Navigating Students to In-Demand Tech Careers in Secure Mobile Programming in the NYC Region

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This project aims to serve the national interest by establishing a pipeline program for students from historically underrepresented groups to gain technical skills in the high demand field of advanced mobile programming, with an emphasis on cybersecurity and secure programming. As the cybersecurity risks to mobile applications proliferate, there is a persistent shortage of secure mobile application development talents in both the regional and national workforce. In addition, the information technology field has not reflected the diverse population of New York City (NYC) or the Nation. Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC) is a minority serving institution in NYC. As a minority serving institution, BMCC has an important role to play in increasing access to technical careers for students from groups underrepresented in STEM and specifically cybersecurity careers. BMCC will partner with Manhattan Bridges High School as well as several NYC local IT companies to foster diversity, inclusion, and excellence for the local next generation advanced technology workforce. The proposed core pedagogical innovation has the potential to become a model for associate degree granting institutions nationally.The project team intends to : (1) improve faculty development and students' learning in the rapidly growing field of secure mobile programming at a high school and a community college in NYC; (2) support students in gaining both technical programming skills and core competencies around critical thinking, collaboration, and design; (3) build, expand and sustain industry partnerships that will provide students with professional internship opportunities in the secure mobile computing industry in NYC, thus paving the way for students to secure high quality jobs. The project has the potential to fill a critical local workforce gap. An external evaluator will lead the project evaluation including both formative and summative assessments. Both quantitative and qualitative tools will be used to evaluate the objectives of the project. The project team plans to share findings and project results at technical colloquia and seminars, Advanced Technology Education conferences and other networking platforms. This project is funded by the Advanced Technological Education program that focuses on the education of technicians for the advanced-technology fields that drive the Nation's economy.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.