Photo by Patrick Olivero
MIDDLETOWN – Brookdale Community College is considered a National Center for Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education. Soon, it will extend its cyber security courses online and anyone will be able to take them without commuting to the Lincroft campus.
Brookdale President David Stout said the program is expected to roll out in fall 2020. Registration begins in March. It is designed for those already working in the IT field who want to increase their security skills, as well as recent Brookdale graduates looking to build on their Networking Information Technology A.A.S. degree.
Photo courtesy Brookdale CC
Michael Qaissaunee, chair of Brookdale’s engineering and technology department, said the need for cybersecurity talent is “tremendous” in many industries, especially in New Jersey and New York. “There doesn’t seem to be any indication that that’s going to change any time soon.”
Brookdale currently offers select cybersecurity instruction in automotive technology, education, criminal justice and healthcare science courses, among others. Program graduates have gone on to work at major companies like CBS networks, IBM, Intel and more.
The school’s recognition as a center for academic excellence in cyber defense education through 2024 was earned from the National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security.
It is among 320 colleges nationwide to earn the distinction, out of about 5,000 colleges and universities, Qaissaunee said. “That will hopefully give them (students) a leg up in finding jobs or moving up in their current jobs.”
The County College of Morris is also a center of academic excellence. However, Qaissaunee noted Brookdale’s program is “much more hands-on focused” and helps students learn “the skills that a cybersecurity professional needs.”
To earn a certificate in the cybersecurity program, students must take six courses. That includes introductory courses on networking, the UNIX operating system and security; computer forensics; ethical hacking; and perimeter security. There are no restrictions on who can or cannot enroll.
Brookdale received a $100,000 Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education (FIPSE) grant from the U.S. Department of Education last year to focus on cybersecurity infrastructure. With the grant, it was able to install servers at the college’s data center, allowing students to work in virtual labs they can access from any location. Students can work at home, on campus – anywhere – free of charge.
“Once we had that in place it made perfect sense to take the whole program online because now the hands-on skills that we used to do in the classroom, we’ve moved that into the cloud where now those students can do those hands-on skills from anywhere,” said Qaissaunee.
“It’s absolutely a need,” Stout said of online programs. Some students take a mix of online courses and classroom courses to help them maintain their jobs and obtain extra credits in the semester. Others pursue degrees fully online, especially adult students. Online programs are determined based on student needs and availabilities in the job market.
Aside from the FIPSE grant, the college has received a $900,000 National Science Foundation grant to develop online content in cybersecurity and networking, as well as a $500,000 grant for cyber-security scholarships targeted for veteran students or students with bachelor’s degrees who have committed to working for federal agencies.
“The federal government is so in need of cyber-security talent that they’re funding programs like us to teach students cybersecurity and pay for that and the students then commit to working two years in a federal agency,” he said.
The student reaction has been “tremendous” because it reinforces what they learn “in a tangible way. They can see exactly how the commands work and what they’re doing in this environment to use those cyber- security skills,” he said.
Two full-time faculty members instructing courses now, including Qaissaunee, and an additional faculty member will be brought on to run the program online. Anyone interested in enrollment can contact staff at the Teaching and Learning Center at the Brookdale campus.
