CyberCorps Scholarship for Service (Renewal): Strengthening the Cybersecurity Workforce through an Emphasis on Diversity, Mentoring, and Career Success

该项目延续了德克萨斯大学圣安东尼奥分校（UTSA）的CyberCorps®服务奖学金（SFS）计划。在其生命周期内，SFS计划增加了进入劳动力市场和为政府工作的网络安全毕业生的数量。UTSA是一家西班牙裔占多数的机构，它将扩大这些成功，为该领域历史上代表性不足的劳动力群体：妇女，残疾人，第一代学生以及少数群体的人，他们参与网络安全的比例低于总人口。该项目通过直接支持SFS学者，间接吸引更多学生进入网络安全和人工智能（AI）领域，增强了科学，工程和信息技术学生的教育和研究基础设施。该项目的教育和职业发展活动将为未来的网络安全专业人员做好准备，以满足政府网络安全劳动力的严重短缺。UTSA在网络安全方面提供高质量，多因素的学习经验。网络安全的多个学位选项可通过三个不同的学院（科学，工程和商业）获得。SFS学者将接受学术和职业成功的指导，通过与组织和社区的真实的网络安全项目提供体验式学习，并鼓励他们参加黑客马拉松和网络安全竞赛，或与教师一起进行研究，以便在课堂之外学习。此外，外展活动将旨在提高圣安东尼奥地区和整个德克萨斯州的高中，社区大学，四年制学位和研究生对网络安全和人工智能机会的认识。该项目的活动将导致一个更多样化的网络安全毕业生具有全面的教育和信心，追求在政府的职业生涯。反过来，这将从两个方面改善国家安全：（a）将有更多来自网络安全领域代表性不足的群体的学生在政府工作，（B）这些训练有素的学生可能很快就会有成效，能够适应网络安全领域快速变化的挑战。该项目得到CyberCorps®服务奖学金（SFS）计划的支持，该计划为建立或继续网络安全奖学金计划的提案提供资金，并与美国国家网络战略保持一致，以培养一支上级网络安全人才队伍。毕业后，奖学金获得者需要在联邦，州，地方或部落政府组织的网络安全工作与他们的奖学金支持相同的时间。这个奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并已被认为是值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估的支持。

This project continues the CyberCorps® Scholarship for Service (SFS) program at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA). During its lifetime the SFS program has increased the number of cybersecurity graduates entering the workforce and those working for the government. UTSA, a Hispanic-majority institution, will expand on these successes for a workforce segment historically underrepresented in the field: women, persons with disabilities, first-generation students, and persons from minority groups whose participation in cybersecurity is below their proportion in the overall population. This project enhances the infrastructure for the education and research of students in science, engineering, and information technology directly by supporting SFS scholars, and indirectly by attracting more students to the cybersecurity and artificial intelligence (AI) fields. The project's educational and career development activities will prepare a diverse group of future cybersecurity professionals to meet critical shortages in the government cybersecurity workforce. UTSA offers high-quality, multi-factored learning experiences in cybersecurity. Multiple degree options in cybersecurity are available through three different colleges (Sciences, Engineering, and Business). The SFS scholars will be mentored for academic and career success, offered experiential learning through real cybersecurity projects with organizations and communities, and encouraged to participate in hackathons and cybersecurity competitions or pursue research with faculty for learning beyond the classroom. Moreover, outreach activities will aim to increase awareness of the opportunities in cybersecurity and AI among high school, community college, four-year degree, and graduate students in the San Antonio region and throughout Texas. The project activities will lead to a more diverse set of cybersecurity graduates with a well-rounded education and confidence to pursue careers in government. This, in turn, will improve national security in two ways: (a) there will be more students working in government from groups who are underrepresented in the cybersecurity field, and (b) these well-trained students are likely to be productive quickly and be able to adapt to rapidly changing challenges in cybersecurity.This project is supported by the CyberCorps® Scholarship for Service (SFS) program, which funds proposals establishing or continuing scholarship programs in cybersecurity and aligns with the U.S. National Cyber Strategy to develop a superior cybersecurity workforce. Following graduation, scholarship recipients are required to work in cybersecurity for a federal, state, local, or tribal Government organization for the same duration as their scholarship support.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.