Pace University awarded $3.8M federal grant for cybersecurity training

The National Science Foundation has awarded $3.8 million in grant funding to Pace University”™s Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems. The funds will be disbursed to Pace over a five-year period.

The NSF is a federal agency created by Congress in 1950 to promote the progress of science in the U.S. Its 2021 budget was $8.5 billion. The foundation reports that it provides approximately 25% of all federally supported basic research conducted by colleges and universities in the U.S.

The funding for CSIS at Pace will enable expansion of its CyberCorps Scholarship for Service program that provides training for careers in government focusing on cybersecurity, cyber defense and related operations along with other cybersecurity programs.

The funding also is designed to help increase the number of women and minorities studying cybersecurity with a view toward working for the federal government. The Seidenberg School is located at the Pace campuses in Pleasantville and New York City.

“There is an immense need and demand for cybersecurity experts in our country,” said Li-Chiou Chen, the professor who manages the CyberCorps program. “Because of our expertise, location and track record, Pace University is uniquely positioned and equipped to deliver on this need now and for years to come.”

Pace stated that the grant would help pay for scholarships, workshops, competitions, conferences and related activities.

Pace notes that a 2020 FBI report shows an increase in cybercrimes in recent years. The report found that in 2020 such crimes resulted in an estimated $4.2 billion in losses for businesses.

The Seidenberg School is a National Security Agency and Department of Homeland Security designated National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education.