CYBERSECURITY 

WORKFORCE 

DEVELOPMENT 

THE LONG GAME: A 

REGIONAL MODEL FOR 

THE NATION 

THE CYBER INNOVATION CENTER 

RESPONSE TO THE NIST RFI 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cybersecurity Workforce Development 

The Long Game: A Regional Model for the Nation 

The Cyber Innovation Center greatly appreciates the opportunity to provide input to the critical 

area of growing and strengthening the cyber workforce. Exactly 10 years ago this month, 

leaders in Bossier City, LA set off on an aggressive journey to create a new economy for the 

local area focused on the cyber industry. The end state was to create new cyber positions in 

the local economy resulting in higher paying/quality jobs for the citizens in and near Bossier 

City, LA. 

Most of the specific RFI questions will be answered in the below narrative. The questions which 

are not specifically answered are addressed at the bottom of this document. Our story is not a 

one size fits all; instead it serves as a model for other communities to create their own cyber 

workforce. From the men and women at the Cyber Innovation Center; we hope you enjoy our 

story! 

In the 20th century, Louisiana’s economy and workforce relied heavily on the oil and gas, 

agriculture, and gaming industries. Ten years ago, community leaders in Northwest Louisiana 

determined that for the region to be prosperous in the information age of the 21st century, we 

needed to transform our economic and education opportunities around cybersecurity. This 

pivot to a technology driven, knowledge-based economy began with a massive cooperative 

effort across government, industry, and educational institutions to revamp educational 

offerings at multiple levels and to lay the groundwork for a cyber-based workforce 

development pipeline instrumental to increasing the availability of talented cyber-professionals 

and providing pathways for entry into cyber careers. After ten years of work, while 

continuously adapting to the changing economic and technological landscape, Louisiana is 

beginning to reap the rewards of that groundbreaking vision. 

In 2007, The Cyber Innovation Center (CIC), the now anchor of the National Cyber Research 

Park, was created in Bossier City, LA. The CIC was built on farmland where cows and crops have 

been replaced by technology infrastructure, miles of cables, computers, and high tech 

professionals employed by cyber-related companies, government as well as institutions of 

higher education. An area that members of a previous generation would have left without a 

second thought, today, is the campus of a significant cyber workforce. 

The CIC acts as a “hub” between the cyber industry and higher educational institutions with the 

aim to develop a curriculum which allows the company to hire an employee at an entry level 

position and then grow that employee as he/she progresses through a career. The CIC 

recognized in the development of this pipeline that the traditional, linear process requiring a 

student to obtain a degree before entering the cyber workforce is no longer the only, or 

necessarily the preferred, method for achieving this goal. In many instances, it may prove more 

beneficial to provide a student with a customized training plan. 

2 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 1. A Cyber Workforce Development Interstate 

To acknowledge the possibility of multiple life paths leading to cyber workforce entry, the CIC 

has reimagined the traditional end-to-end workforce training pipeline as more of an interstate, 

populated with many points of entry, exit, and re-entry. Like the interstate system has parallel 

service roads that feed traffic onto high-speed limited access highways, the cyber workforce 

interstate has feeder institutions that work synergistically to direct students and candidates to 

appropriate levels of training and education, and ultimately into the workforce. Industry, 

universities, and community colleges all work together at different levels to contribute to this 

goal. 

How did we get there? 

In order to support the newly diversified 21st century career opportunities in northern 

Louisiana, the CIC recognized the need to organically grow a cyber-skilled workforce. This 

growth was to be done with collaboration among two- and four-year higher education 

institutions, industry, government, and K-12 school systems. 

3 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are a variety of education and workforce development pathways available to meet the 

demands of industry. Some potential employees follow the traditional path of a two- or fouryear university, others start school and return later to finish, and yet other experienced workers 

seek to be retrained in a new industry. The one thing all of those workforce options have in 

common is that the individual attended a K-12 institution. As such, the CIC established as one 

of its primary objectives early on, the mission of creating and providing educational 

opportunities for our K-12 students, the next cyber workforce. 

A comprehensive K-12 curriculum 

In order to build a sustainable knowledge-based cyber-skilled workforce that can support the 

needs of government, industry, and academia, the CIC developed a robust Academic Outreach 

and Workforce Development Program, the National Integrated Cyber Education Research 

Center (NICERC). NICERC and the educational programs it distributes benefit K-12 teachers by 

providing dynamic cyber-based curricula resources for the classroom as well as extensive 

professional development opportunities for educators. These resources benefit students by 

exposing them to innovative, project-driven learning environments that increase student 

engagement and content retention. As a result of this program, the community and the nation 

benefit from a new cyber and STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) 

literate workforce that will ensure America’s competitiveness and strengthened national 

security. 

In 2012, the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity Training and Assistance Program 

(CETAP) identified NICERC as their lead technical institute for developing and delivering cyberthemed classroom resources to teachers across the country. NICERC’s innovative, cyber-based 

curricula is available at no cost to any K-12 educator within the United States and its territories. 

Over the last 4 years, NICERC content has been made accessible to more than 6,200 teachers in 

all 50 states and two U.S. territories. Nineteen state departments of education have enlisted 

help from NICERC to create or implement curriculum frameworks, course standards, or 

graduation career pathways. Also in that time, NICERC’s impact has reached 1.6 million 

students, many of which have gone on to study cyber engineering in college, obtained 

workplace-ready credentials and certifications, and even transferred directly into the workplace 

from high school. 

The Cyber InterstateTM, illustrated below, outlines NICERC's extensive library of curricula that 

provides opportunities for students starting in kindergarten through post-secondary education 

to gain an understanding of cyber issues, engage in cyber education, and provide a foundation 

for entering cyber-base degree programs and career fields. Cyber Interstate curricula supplies 

schools with a rigorous program that showcases a systems-level understanding of real-world 

applications of STEM and builds the foundation for an expansion of cybersecurity knowledge. 

These project-driven, application-based courses engage students in primary, secondary and 

post-secondary education. 

4 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 2. The Cyber InterstateTM K-12 Curriculum 

In early 2016, the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) published an updated 

Cybersecurity Workforce Framework (CWF) aimed at tackling “the challenges of guiding 

cybersecurity career development and workforce planning” (National Institute of Standards and 

Technology website, July 7, 2017). Since the release of that document, NICERC has been 

identifying content area topics from their Cyber Interstate that meet up with the categories, 

specialty areas, and work roles from the CWF. Of the more than 2000 work roles accounted for 

in the CWF (work roles consist of job tasks and knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) required to 

perform tasks), NICERC has content within the high school stage of its Cyber Interstate that 

touches on almost 300 specific work roles. This means that by introducing high school students 

to the curriculum provided by NICERC’s Cyber Interstate, teachers are taking a proactive 

approach to preparing the future cyber workforce. 

NICERC’s professional development opportunities span are available in various cities, 

nationwide. Teachers gain hands-on experience with projects and technology that provides 

new, innovative ways to engage students in the classroom. These workshops deliver a handson, context-based approach to math and science while incorporating components from the 

humanities and liberal arts, which allows those teachers to embed the curricula across multiple 

disciplines and empowers them to prepare students to become the next generation of 

engineers and cyber professionals. The professional development offered through NICERC 

delivers a collaborative and comprehensive solution that fosters systemic and sustainable 

change in the educational environment, thus enhancing the expansion of knowledge among 

students. NICERC utilizes master teachers, university faculty, and doctoral-degreed educators 

from regions across the country to support the sustainable and scalable distribution of curricula 

and professional development. Through NICERC’s teacher professional development model, 

5 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

more students are ultimately impacted (over a greater period of time) than would any program 

aimed at students alone. 

Community Colleges/Universities 

Bossier Parish Community College 

The mission of Bossier Parish Community College (BPCC) is to promote attainment of 

educational goals within the community and strengthen the regional economy. This mission is 

accomplished through the innovative delivery of quality courses and programs that provide 

sound academic education, broad vocational and career training, continuing education, and 

varied community services. BPCC provides a wholesome, ethical, and intellectually stimulating 

environment in which students develop their academic and vocational skills to compete in a 

technological society. 

To achieve its mission of instruction and service, BPCC is committed to the following: 

•		 Offering associate degree programs, one- and two-year occupational certificate 

programs, and specialized career training. 

•		 Delivering education and training/retraining through technical programs, workforce 

development, community education, and non-credit courses to serve citizen, 

business, and industry needs. 

•		 Providing opportunity to earn academic college credits for articulation to other 

institutions of higher learning. 

•		 Providing developmental studies and remedial programs that enable students to 

acquire basic skills. 

•		 Utilizing a comprehensive program of student services. 

The BPCC Cyber Technology Program aligns with the mission of the College by offering 

associate degree programs consisting of industry-driven course content that prepares 

graduates for work in a broad choice of occupations. The program content is experiencing 

continuous improvement and evolution to keep pace with requirements from cyber business 

partners. Initiatives by federal and state government, industry sponsors, and other sources 

contribute to updated lab equipment as well as the completion of other program 

improvements. 

In 2012, the National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security named BPCC 

as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance 2-Year Education. BPCC 

is one of the first 13 schools across the nation awarded this honor. BPCC earned this 

designation by being a leader in information security education, curriculum development, 

faculty training, in Northwest Louisiana. BPCC works to foster and create opportunities for 

interdisciplinary activities, continues to develop and support both credit and continuing 

education academic programs, facilitates efforts to obtain extramural funding, and serves as a 

link between the academic and professional communities. 

Louisiana Tech University 

6 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Louisiana Tech University (LA Tech) is a comprehensive, four-year public research university 

offering an impressive array of undergraduate and graduate degree programs for citizens of the 

21st century and beyond. This includes unique strengths in cyber-fundamentals and 

cybersecurity education and training. LA Tech also continues to innovate at the intersection of 

education and training through ongoing cybersecurity curriculum development efforts. 

It offers the nation’s first four-year undergraduate Cyber Engineering degree, which provides 

graduates with technology design skills supported by interdisciplinary knowledge of engineering 

fundamentals, history and ethics, computer science, policy and legal issues, electromagnetic 

sciences, and mathematics. During the Cyber Engineering program’s development, LA Tech 

faculty and administrators worked in partnership with representatives from multiple federal 

agencies to understand agency needs and learning objectives for future government 

employees. The result was an interdisciplinary curriculum, drawn from University’s strengths in 

Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mathematics, Physical Sciences, with strategic 

collaboration with Liberal Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities programs, designed to produce 

candidates to serve as the future cyber workforce for the nation. LA Tech awarded its first 

Cyber Engineering degrees in spring 2015. LA Tech’s Bachelor’s of Science (BS) in Computer 

Science (CS) can be paired with a concentration in Cybersecurity. The CS program provides a 

foundational study of the practical and theoretical aspects of computing, and the cybersecurity 

concentration prepares students to solve network security problems. LA Tech’s College of 

Business offers a BS in Computer Information Systems (CIS) with a concentration in Information 

Assurance. The CIS curriculum prepares students to conduct work in information technology 

within the business environment, and the Information Assurance track lays the foundation for 

work in cybersecurity covering network design and implementation, principles of information 

assurance, incident response, computer forensics, disaster recovery and business continuity, 

information systems assurance risk analysis, and cryptography. Figure 1 shows the growth 

associated with each of the above undergraduate degrees from 2013-2016. 

Figure 3. Undergraduate enrollment in LA Tech's three BS computing disciplines. 

LA Tech also offers innovative graduate programs leveraging interdisciplinary learning and skills 

development. The College of Business offers an MBA with a concentration in Information 

Assurance (IA). The graduate IA concentration covers similar topics to the undergraduate IA 

course sequence at an advanced level. These topics give graduates security skills to take into 

the business sector with which to improve cybersecurity practices in their organizations of hire. 

The Ph.D. in Computational Analysis and Modeling (CAM) integrates involvement from the 

7 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

College of Engineering and Science and the College of Applied and Natural Sciences to produce 

professionals capable of implementing, analyzing, and evaluating mathematical models using 

state-of-the-art computing environments and advanced visual data techniques. The CAM 

program prepares graduates to work in network science, cybersecurity, and big data with a 

unique foundational knowledge of mathematics and computing. LA Tech’s Ph.D. in Engineering 

with a concentration in Cyberspace Engineering prepares graduates to design and engineer 

cybersecurity systems, tasks not typically included in traditional cybersecurity degree programs. 

With the emphasis on design, Engineering Ph.D. graduates are prepared to address the 

challenges with cybersecurity in design, as well as to contribute to the design of control systems 

security and more. 

Education Program Development 

LA Tech is continually looking for innovative, new offerings to increase educational and training 

opportunities for students in the areas of technology, cybersecurity and cyber engineering. As 

an example of such pursuits, LA Tech has an Education Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the 

Defense Cyber Crime Center (DC3) in recognition of the importance of education to the future 

and economic well-being of the nation. The agreement supports the DC3’s goal to encourage 

the study of cyber and digital forensics science all education levels in the US, and to bring 

scientific, mathematical and technological experience to universities such as LA Tech. LA Tech 

is thus exploring the development of tailored educational opportunities to provide students, 

active service members at the Barksdale Air Force Base and beyond, and veterans, access to 

high quality cyber education to prepare them for future careers in different intricacies of the 

discipline. 

Centers of Excellence 

Along with the BPCC and LA Tech cybersecurity programs mentioned above, the two 

institutions hold three “Center of Excellence” designations supporting student development 

and research. 

BPCC was named by the National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security as 

a National Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance 2-Year Education. BPCC 

earned this designation by being a leader in information security education, curriculum 

development and faculty training in Northwest Louisiana. BPCC works to foster and create 

opportunities for interdisciplinary activities, continues to develop and support both credit and 

continuing education academic programs, facilitates efforts to obtain extramural funding, and 

serves as a link between the academic and professional communities. 

BPCC also holds the designation as a Center for Workforce Excellence in Cyber Technology 

issued by the Louisiana Community and Technical College System and the Louisiana Board of 

Regents. The Center of Workforce Excellence in Cyber Technology has the following noted 

strengths: 

Fourteen courses align directly to industry-based cyber certifications; 

8 

x
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

x New content or courses are being added to the curriculum to keep the program current 

with technology trends; 

x Computer information system and cyber programs are Association of Technology, 

Management, and Applied Engineering (ATMAE) accredited; 

x Foundation classes are well-established and faculty and staff are willing to accept 

change and expand the program; 

x Strong industry and community support as evidenced through advisory board 

participation, new course and program development, and 

x Location near several large academic and employer partners. 

At LA Tech, the Center for Information Assurance is an interdisciplinary research center formed 

to facilitate research, training, and awareness in Information Assurance in business for 

Northwest Louisiana and for the United States. NSA and DHS designated LA Tech a National 

Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance Research for academic years 2012-

2017. While not formally recognized, LA Tech’s Center for Secure Cyberspace is an 

interdisciplinary and interinstitutional entity that assists the faculty members in their research 

and supporting federal, state, and private sector cybersecurity needs in collaboration with the 

Cyber Innovation Center. These two centers provide students with an exposure to research 

addressing real-world problems during the course of their education and contributes to LA 

Tech’s longitudinal approach to student development. 

Non-Traditional Student/Veterans 

A key ingredient to the workforce which has, and continues to be developed in this region, is 

training the “non-traditional student/worker.” A non-traditional student/worker ranges from 

someone who never completed their degree to an oil field worker who no longer has a job due 

to a strained economy, to someone who simply is interested in a career change. Additionally, 

some of the non-traditional students/workers we encounter do not have the luxury of quitting 

a job to become a full-time student. Often the goal of the non-traditional student/worker is to 

become trained as quickly as possible, which means providing the student with multiple access 

paths to education materials and the minimum requirements to become part of the workforce. 

Our region is blessed to be home to Barksdale Air Force Base. Barksdale is not only home to 

two-thirds of the nuclear triad but also home to many active duty, reserve, and veteran 

members. Working with our academic partners and Barksdale Air Force Base, the CIC has 

created a process in which we identify active duty service members prior to the end of their 

enlistment and align them with a regional cyber company. Some of these service members also 

have security clearances which meet the needs of some of our local cyber companies. 

Identifying them prior to their separation date allows us to ensure they have the required 

certifications and training to enter the cyber workforce immediately upon separation. We also 

work with Barksdale Air Force Base to engage dependents transferring to Barksdale to 

determine if their background and interests align with the cyber industry. Finally, the CIC 

9 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

provides robust support providing veterans with opportunities to obtain appropriate training 

and education required by the regional cyber companies. 

Bossier Parish Community College also has a long-standing partnership with Barksdale Air Force 

Base and has been named for six consecutive years to the coveted Military Friendly Schools® 

list (GI Jobs Magazine), which honors the top 15 percent of colleges, universities, and vocational 

schools, that provide outstanding service to military students. Local service members, family 

members, and veterans continually look to our BPCC for their educational advancement. 

BPCC’s Veteran Educational Services assist students by processing of military education benefits 

and act as a resource for academic and wrap-around services. 

Summary 

Despite starting out in a national recession, the CIC over the past 10 years has been able to 

expand its K-12 cyber curriculum from a program or two that ran only part time in a handful of 

northern Louisiana schools to content that spans the entire K-12 spectrum and can be found in 

classrooms from coast to coast. The CIC has expanded the local workforce similarly, creating 

more than 1,000 high-quality cyber jobs, train a traditional and non-traditional workforce, and 

assisted in creating the nation’s first cyber engineering degree. 

By developing an organic cyber workforce, we not only increase tax revenue, lower the 

unemployment rate, and keep the jobs here, but we also increase the demand signal for more 

cyber related jobs. In order to successfully replicate these results and growth to other areas of 

the country, our experience has taught us that to be successful, a region needs the committed 

support of all local and regional stakeholders. Over the past few years, leadership in cities such 

as Bossier City and Monroe have purposefully and successfully created opportunities to entice 

high quality cyber related companies to the region. This has promoted the development of 

modern facilities and infrastructure as well as continued, compounding support from additional 

local industry and government. 

10 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

General Information 

1. Are you involved in cybersecurity workforce education or training (e.g., curriculum-based 

programs)? If so, in what capacity (including, but not limited to: Community college or 

university faculty or administrator; official with a non-profit association focused on 

cybersecurity workforce needs; manufacturer or service company that relies on cybersecurity 

employees; cybersecurity curriculum developer; cybersecurity training institute; educator in a 

primary grade school; government agency that provides " funding for cybersecurity 

education; or student or employee enrolled in a cybersecurity education or training 

program)? 

See the above narrative. 

1. What current metrics and data exist for cybersecurity education, training, and workforce 

developments, and what improvements are needed in the collection, organization, and 

sharing of information about cybersecurity education, training, and workforce development 

programs? 

Teachers are the key to a systemic and sustainable change in cybersecurity education at the K12 level. NICERC’s teacher focused programs allow for the rapid expansion and distribution of 

cyber-based knowledge, skills, and abilities to K-12 students across the country. One teacher, 

on average, will educate 122 students in an academic year. By focusing on the development 

and empowerment of educators, we see an exponential impact among students. 

Annual Teacher Compounding 

Impact Student Impact 

1,300,000 5,500 

3,086 

520,739 

162,315 920 55,279 

367 13,231 

100 

FY12 FY13 FY14 FY15 FY16 FY12 FY13 FY14 FY15 FY16 

ACTUAL ACTUAL ACTUAL ACTUAL PROJECTED Actual Actual Actual Actual Projected 

Figure 4. Teacher Impact and Compounding Student Impact 

11 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This work is just the beginning of a greater impact needed in cybersecurity education. 52 

million K-12 students in the United States and they need to be introduced and brought on to 

the Cyber Interstate. This foundation provides for the expansion of two- and four-year degree 

programs, internships, and subsequent decrease in cyber-based job vacancies. 

Total Annual Enrollment 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 

AAS Cyber Technology (Net. Sec. & Prog. Analyst) 43 137 165 157 178 

Figure 5. Cyber Technology Enrollment 

BPCC IT Enrollment 

200 

20 

0 

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 

75 

119 

138 

161 

167 172 169 158 

178 

40 

60 

80 

100 

120 

140 

160 

180 

Figure 6. BPCC Information Technology Enrollment 

The Associate of Applied Science in Systems Administration was born out of a collaboration 

with industry partner. The new degree program was recently approved by the LCTCS System 

and the Louisiana Board of Regents. This program offers two concentrations. 

x Concentration in DevOps program provides students with a broad, overarching 

knowledge of a variety of IT subject areas that brings together development, operations, 

and testing. DevOps is an interdisciplinary program that requires communication, 

collaboration, and a broad knowledge so that students understand the full-scope of 

software delivery. 

x Concentration in Enterprise Information Technology & Development program provides 

students with the skills needed to manage an organization's computer systems. The 

program prepares individuals to function as entry-level systems administrators and 

covers analyzing system logs, applying system updates, updating user accounts, 

troubleshooting problems, and ensuring uptime. 

Internships and Employment Rates 

For all degree programs in the IT fields, an internship is a requirement for graduation. Using 

one example, CSRA, since the inception of the Louisiana Economic Development (LED)/CSRA 

grant on January 2014, a total of 62 BPCC students have either interned or have been hired by 

12 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CSRA. Of those 62 BPCC students, 10 students started as interns and were hired by CSRA, 42 

were employed by CSRA without interning, and another 10 have interned or are currently 

interning with CSRA. 

2. Is there sufficient understanding and agreement about workforce categories, specialty 

areas, work roles, and knowledge/skills/abilities? 

In Northern Louisiana, the Cyber Innovation Center (CIC) works with its educational partners, 

local and regional employers to ensure the workforce supply is quantified, met and trained with 

the current and future needs of the employers. However, understanding and agreement on 

workforce categories and roles across industry and academia still needs improvement. Since 

the release of the NICE Cybersecurity Workforce Framework (CWF), NICERC has been 

identifying content area topics from their curricula that map to the categories, specialty areas, 

and work roles from the CWF. NICERC has content within the high school stage of its curricula 

that touches on almost 300 specific work roles within the CWF (work roles consist of job tasks 

and knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) required to perform tasks). By introducing high school 

students to the curriculum provided by NICERC’s Cyber Interstate, teachers are taking a 

proactive approach to preparing the future cyber workforce. 

3. Are appropriate cybersecurity policies in place in your organization regarding workforce 

education and training efforts and are those policies regularly and consistently enforced? 

As an organization dedicated to improving the cybersecurity workforce, the CIC and NICERC 

have established policies that ensure its employees receive regular cybersecurity training. 

These policies and the associated training focus both on cyber hygiene/awareness of evolving 

threats and the implementation of IT security procedures and systems designed to improve 

cybersecurity posture and effectively mitigate risk. 

4. What types of knowledge or skills do employers need or value as they build their 

cybersecurity workforce? Are employer expectations realistic? Why or why not? Are these 

expectations in line with the knowledge and skills of the existing workforce or student 

pipeline? How do these types of knowledge and skills vary by role, industry, and sector, (e.g., 

energy vs financial sectors)? 

The CIC, the Bossier Parish Community College (BPCC), North Louisiana Economic Partnership, 

and industry partners like CSRA have worked to identify the types of cyber jobs employers need 

and have encouraged the promotion and marketing of our existing high-tech cluster to foster 

and cultivate a knowledge-based economy. These partnerships have led to increased 

employment rates for BPCC students as they possess the cybersecurity knowledge and skills 

valued by employers. The following table outlines some of the promising IT careers in our 

region: 

13 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Current and Future Employment Projections for NW Louisiana 

Job Titles SOC NAICS Demand 

2016 

Expected 

2018 

2 Year 

Code Code Growth 

Cyber Technology 

Software Developers, Applications 15-1132 541511 1,250 1,370 120 

Computer Network Support Specialists 15-1152 541511 1,240 1,290 60 

Computer User Support Specialists 15-1151 541513 3,810 3,990 190 

Information Security Analysts 15-1122 541513 540 590 50 

Computer Systems Analysts 15-1121 541513 3,490 3,730 240 

Computer Programmers 15-1131 541513 2,700 2,820 120 

Database Administrators 15-1141 541513 440 460 20 

Figure 7. Employment Projections for Northwest Louisiana 

5. Which are the most effective cybersecurity education, training, and workforce development 

programs being conducted in the United States today? What makes those programs effective? What 

are the goals for these programs and how are they successful in reaching their goals? Are there 

examples of effective/scalable cybersecurity, education, training, and workforce development 

programs? 

In 2012, the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity Training and Assistance Program 

(CETAP) identified NICERC as their lead technical institute for developing and delivering cyberthemed classroom resources to teachers across the country. NICERC’s innovative, cyber-based 

curricula is available at no cost to any K-12 educator within the United States and its territories. 

Over the last 4 years, NICERC content has been made accessible to more than 6,200 teachers in 

all 50 states and two U.S. territories. Nineteen state departments of education have enlisted 

help from NICERC to create or implement curriculum frameworks, course standards, or 

graduation career pathways. Also in that time, NICERC’s impact has reached 1.3 million 

students, many of which have gone on to study cyber engineering in college, obtained 

workplace-ready credentials and certifications, and even transferred directly into the workplace 

from high school. 

6. What are the greatest challenges and opportunities facing the Nation, employers, and 

workers in terms of cybersecurity education, training, and workforce development? 

The cyber landscape is constantly shifting which requires cyber industries to stay at or above 

pace of the shifting landscape. This, of course, trickles down to cyber education and training 

programs. Educational intuitions must stay in constant engagement with their industry 

partners to ensure the education and training programs are aligned with this ever-changing 

industry and workforce needs. 

7. How will advances in technology (e.g., artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, etc.) or 

other factors affect the cybersecurity workforce needed in the future? How much do 

cybersecurity education, training, and workforce development programs need to adapt to 

prepare the workforce to protect modernized cyber physical systems (CPS)? 

14 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While it is not possible to accurately predict the specific labor needs that will accompany the 

development of a sector as broad and innovative as security of cyber physical systems, the 

solution is to rethink the approach such that the innovation driving that sector is increased 

rather than hindered. The implementation of NICERC curricula is one example of how driving 

broad, cyber-based fundamentals throughout grades, levels, and institutions can broaden the 

pipeline as wide as possible and educate a citizenry that helps and does not hinder 

cybersecurity efforts. Curriculum development needs to evolve and become agile, to react 

quickly to industry needs based on innovation and tech disruption such as AI, IoT etc.... As 

technologies, techniques and practices emerge, curriculum needs to align and provide 

education on standards, technologies and best practices to facilitate student engagement and 

success. 

Content provided by NICERC’s Cyber Interstate is available to teachers through a digital learning 

management system (LMS). When a teacher gains access to the LMS, they have the ability to 

log in at any time to observe changes to, additions to, or deletions from the content. The use of 

this digital LMS was predicated on the fact that the content being presented will be focused on 

current and emerging technologies, and as a result, if it were prepared in print format, would 

most likely be out of date before it ever got to the classroom. Consequently, by employing a 

digital distribution service, NICERC authors and subject matter experts are able to update the 

content as technology and real-world applications evolve. They can revise projects based on 

emerging knowledge or alter lesson materials to include relevant current events. Simply put, 

even the technology in our hands is out of date soon after becoming available. By providing 

materials to teachers that can be distributed digitally and immediately, NICERC makes every 

attempt to ensure that the educated workforce resulting from interaction with Cyber Interstate 

content is the most well-prepared applicant for each job or degree program. 

One role of advancing technology will be to spur a shift in the areas of greatest economic 

activity, meaning that as technological advances are applied in society, prominent labor 

categories will shift, and jobs that were reliable will disappear. The key to a successful 

transition will be taking advantage of this opportunity to drive innovation in new sectors, rather 

than trying to sustain support for those that are being made obsolete by technological 

advances. As these shifts manifest, the need for a large adaptable cyber workforce will not 

disappear. Adapting the early education to prime students for cyber careers as well as creating 

training programs/educational opportunities to help workers transition in to a cyber career will 

widen the cyber workforce pool, contribute to the adaptability of the workforce, and bring 

broad perspectives and skillsets from other sectors into the cyber workforce. The added 

richness of experience of workers re-training to cyber careers can act as an additional driving 

force for innovation in the sector. 

8. What steps or programs should be continued, modified, discontinued, or introduced to 

grow and sustain the Nation's cybersecurity workforce, taking into account needs and trends? 

What steps should be taken: 

15 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The cybersecurity workforce development that the CIC and specified entities have been 

building for the past decade has hinged on their ability to explore collaborative solutions to this 

multifaceted, long term issue. No one specific program has been key in turning the tide for 

cyber workforce development, but continual partnership across government, industry, and 

academic institutions was required to build the web of supporting structures that provide 

accessible entry pathways for individuals to join the cyber workforce. For one individual to 

successfully enter the cyber workforce, they must possess skills required by government and 

industry, and so must have received training and education that address those specific 

requirements. Communication between government, industry, and educational institutions is 

required to design those training and educational programs. A high level of interoperability and 

coordinated efforts between these entities is required to achieve a setting where achieving 

computer literacy in K-12 is the standard, postsecondary STEM programs are accessible and 

entry is encouraged, and jobs in technology are available locally. The goal of cybersecurity 

workforce development is the creation of life pathways that flow naturally into a cyber career, 

and this is achieved with the development of an environment where as much as possible the 

bars to educational access and workforce entry are removed. 

i. At the Federal level? 

At the Federal level, partnership between agencies involved in government cybersecurity 

and academia will be necessary. Currently, DoD has its own training programs in 

cybersecurity, and they are focused heavily in practical applications. While this is effective 

for preparing workers for specific roles, it is missing the component of cutting edge 

scientific research. Cyber security is at its core an evolving and innovative sector, and 

training programs could increase effectiveness if they were able to integrate scientific 

exploration and to push the boundaries for latest methods. The practical methods that 

have been codified into training programs grow out of date quickly. 

Establish a national initiative to focus on cybersecurity education that would expand 

programs like the DHS Cybersecurity Education and Training Assistance Program (CETAP) to 

ensure every community has access to cyber curricula, classroom resources, and teacher 

professional development. By next year, the CETAP program will have successfully reached 

approximately 2M of the 52M K-12 students in the U.S. To effectively address our national 

cybersecurity workforce shortages, we need to significantly increase the cyber focus and 

investment in our K-12 student pipeline. Programs like CETAP provide a scalable, effective 

model that can build the cybersecurity workforce foundation we need to ensure our 

economic and national security in the 21st century. 

ii. At the state or local level, including school systems? 

Encourage state and local Departments of Education to develop pathways, frameworks, and 

standards that recognize the importance of cyber across all educational disciplines and 

minimize administrative/bureaucratic barriers limiting educator’s ability to incorporate 

cyber related lessons in the classroom. 

16 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Additionally:
!

· Computer science needs to be included as a standard part of the core curriculum, 

beginning early and being treated as one of the basic sciences.
!

· Computer literacy needs to be established in K-12, and STEM education needs to 

prepare students to pursue further education and then work in technical fields.
!

iii. By the private sector, including employers? 

Participation from industry in cooperative efforts for workforce development is a key 

component in the successful operation of public-private partnerships in the manner we 

have described in the narrative. Much expertise in cybersecurity is developed in, and to a 

large extent contained within, the private sector. One challenge is finding a way to share 

that knowledge and the skill of industry professionals with the public sector in a way that 

stimulates economic development to the benefit of both parties. This process requires a 

tremendous level of communication between parties, and it involves openness and respect 

for differing, though compatible, missions, purposes, and visions across the partner entities. 

Another area where the private sector can play a large role in improving the security 

environment is in the sustained practice of responsible cybersecurity stewardship in the 

creation of systems designed with security ingrained. This is a significant issue with the 

growing internet of things (IoT), and one that will not be resolved until industry addresses 

the intrinsic security and privacy needs that accompany the smart devices so interwoven 

with the human and physical world. 

iv. By education and training providers? 

Provide cyber curricula that is mapped to national and state standards, developed with 

pedagogical rigor, is multi-disciplinary, and delivered via project based learning. The 

curricula and related hands-on projects should also be frequently updated to ensure the 

educational outcomes keep pace with today’s rapidly evolving cyber landscape. 

17