Capacity Building: Collaborative Research: Integrated Learning Environment for Cyber Security of Smart Grid

确保智能电网的网络安全引起了公众和研究人员的极大兴趣。然而，相应的教育方案在许多方面都落后。关于智能电网的安全教育课程或实践学习资源非常有限，特别是关于网络和物理系统之间相互影响的安全教育。为了弥补这一差距，该项目正在开发一个专门用于智能电网教育计划的集成模拟环境，并正在设计一套课程模块和实践项目，重点关注现代电力系统的安全性。通过将控制网络模拟器与电网模拟器程序联合起来，该项目涵盖了支撑智能电网运行的网络和物理系统。研究小组正在进行精心策划的评价和传播活动，以评估创新教材的有效性并促进其广泛采用。经验丰富的独立评估人员正在使用严格的评估程序。研究小组正在三个参与机构的六门课程中实施新的教学材料，该项目正在通过两个教员发展讲习班促进这些方法的广泛采用。智力优势：该项目正在设计一个同类首创的智能电网模拟环境，专门用于涵盖网络和物理系统的安全教育计划。这种环境和教育材料为学生提供了关于未来电力能源系统的变革性学习经验，并促进了这一跨学科领域的研究和教育。通过教师发展研讨会和外展活动等宣传工作，该项目建立了学生教育和培训渠道，吸引高中生进入计算机科学和电子电气专业，为大学生提供安全电力系统所需的网络和物理知识和技能，并为他们在未来电力行业工作的挑战做好准备。更广泛的影响：该项目提供了一种新的方法来培训合格的劳动力，以填补快速发展的智能电网行业中数以万计的空缺职位，并提高未来电力系统的可持续性和安全性。该项目为研究生和本科生提供涉及电网、网络和安全的信息物理系统的跨学科研究经验。少数民族和代表性不足的学生也从该项目中受益。

Ensuring the cyber-security of the smart grid raises significant interest amongst both general public and researchers. However, the corresponding education programs fall behind in many aspects. Very limited curriculum or hands-on learning resources are available for security education about the smart grid, especially for the mutual impacts between cyber and physical systems. To bridge this gap, this project is developing an integrated simulation environment dedicated to smart grid education programs, and is designing a suite of course modules and hands-on projects focusing on security of modern power systems. Through federating the control network simulator with the Power Grid Simulator Program, this project covers both cyber and physical systems underpinning smart grid operations. The research team is carrying out well-planned evaluation and dissemination activities to assess the effectiveness of the innovative instructional materials and promote their wide adoption. Rigorous evaluation procedures are being used by experienced independent evaluators. The research team is implementing the new instructional materials in six courses at three participating institutions, and the project is promoting the wide adoption of the approaches through two faculty development workshops.Intellectual Merits: This project is designing a first-of-its-kind smart grid simulation environment dedicated to security education programs that covers both cyber and physical systems. This environment and the educational materials provide transformative learning experiences for students on future electric energy systems and promote research and education in this interdisciplinary field. Through the dissemination efforts such as faculty development workshops and outreach activities, the project establishes a student education and training pipeline that attracts high school students to CS and EE majors, equips college students with much needed cyber and physical knowledge and skills for secure power systems, and prepares them for the challenges of working in the future power industry.Broader Impacts: This project provides a new method to train qualified workforce to fill tens of thousands of open positions in the fast evolving smart grid industry and improve the sustainability and security of future power systems. The project provides interdisciplinary research experiences in cyber-physical systems involving power grid, networks, and security to both graduate and undergraduate students. Minority and under-represented students also benefit from the project.