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The National Science Foundation funded the University of Central Oklahoma (UCO) for a three-year bridge program to broaden the participation in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) by female students. UCO is a state university in the United States. The project team proposed a global government-university-industry (GUI) model to collaborate with partnering institutions at the international, federal, and state levels. Partnering institutions included IBM, the FBI, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI), the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology, the Francis Tuttle Innovation Center, and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research. Representatives from these partnering institutions served in the roles of advisory board members and internship sponsors who identified skill requirements and job trends. For phase one (2018), the focus was the research and development (R&D) and the implementation of a STEM program with a focus on Forensics Analytics (FA). The STEM+FA curriculum was designed with real-world applications and emerging technologies (e.g. IBM Watson, simulation, virtual reality). The STEM+FA pilot program consisted of simulated learning environments, STEM modules, cloud-based tutorials, and relational databases. These databases were similar to the Combined DNA Index System and Automated Fingerprint Identification System which have been adopted by the FBI and the OSBI to solve modern-day crimes (e.g. cyber security, homicide). Researchers pilot tested the STEM+FA program by collecting and analyzing quantitative and qualitative data. Findings derived from the pilot study evidenced that the STEM+FA pilot program had positive effects on female student career awareness and perceived competencies; whereas career interest remained unchanged.
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Cybersecurity for Everybody - A Multi-Tier Approach to Cyber Security Education, Training, and Awareness in the Undergraduate Curriculum
Almost every career encompasses some form of security and today’s students must be introduced to various aspects of security to be effective in their career and daily lives. South Carolina State University (SC State University) has an ongoing Target Infusion Proposal grant from National Science Foundation (NSF) to address the problem of the lack of awareness and participation in cyber security since 2019. The project vision is to create a successful model of institution wide reform for undergraduate cybersecurity education at SC State University using instruction, internships, and seminars. The student should be able to evaluate, make decisions, and take responsible actions in the context of cyber security. This project uses a multi-tier approach to increase capacity in cyber security education, training, and awareness in the undergraduate curriculum The objective of this poster presentation is to share our experiences with various project activities. The findings presented in this paper may be used by interested parties involved in STEM curriculum.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1912284
- PAR ID:
- 10540370
- Publisher / Repository:
- ASEE Conferences
- Date Published:
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Location:
- Minneapolis, MN
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Conference Paper:
- https://doi.org/10.18260/1-2--41929
