The National Cybersecurity Alliance (NCA), the nation’s leading nonprofit promoting cybersecurity education and awareness, today announced the launch of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities Career Program. Launched in partnership with top HBCUs and cybersecurity organizations – including Prairie View A&M, Southern University, St. Philip’s College, Texas Southern University, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Dell Technologies, Proofpoint, Quanta Services and Trellix – the HBCU Career Program will aim to equip students with the necessary skills to navigate the search process for positions in security, privacy and risk, helping build a pipeline of Black professionals to fill the cyber workforce gap.
Across the nation, there is a critical shortage of cybersecurity professionals – with nearly 715,000 unfilled roles in the U.S. alone through April 2022. In addition, minority candidates make up only a fraction of the cybersecurity workforce with only 9% identifying as Black and 4% identifying as Hispanic. This means building bonds with underrepresented communities is not just pivotal to closing the workforce gap, but in building a more inclusive cybersecurity community.
“For the cybersecurity industry to ever reach its full potential, the industry needs to find ways of bringing diverse talent into its pipeline,” said Lisa Plaggemier, executive director at the National Cybersecurity Alliance. “This program will tackle this long standing issue head on by building bridges between the industry and the untapped talent pools that exist at many HBCUs today.”
As part of the program NCA, partner schools and sponsors will collaborate on a variety of initiatives spanning from networking to interview prep. Such initiatives include:
● Creating and managing mentoring programs between sponsors, schools and students that include training for the mentors and implementing tools and strategies to administer enrollment, user profile matching, scheduling 1:1 sessions and more.
● Conducting a series of in-person events in the fall and spring semesters at HBCUs featuring guest speakers and panel discussions with professionals and recruiters. Events will provide students with a deep dive into the cybersecurity and privacy field, including the types of career paths available, how to interview successfully, what to expect in your first professional job, and personal stories from recent HBCU graduates.
“At Proofpoint, the diversity of our people is the driving force behind much of our success and The HBCU Career Program stands to be a key initiative in helping our industry make key connections with the next generation of cyber talent,” said Sharyl Givens, Chief Human Resources Officer, Proofpoint. “The HBCU community is full of talented students that are interested in technology and cybersecurity and we can’t wait to kick-off the program this fall.”
“The importance of effective cybersecurity in our business has grown significantly. We are excited to partner with the National Cybersecurity Alliance to encourage HBCU students to consider cyber careers in this ever-changing, extremely vital area.” said Moanica Caston, Vice President, Diversity & Inclusion, Quanta Services.
“Building a more diverse cybersecurity workforce is key to bringing new, innovative thinking into the industry and ultimately defending against cyberthreats,” said Jason Rosselot, vice president cybersecurity and business unit security officer, Dell Technologies. “With the launch of the HBCU Career Program, we’re taking a meaningful step toward developing the diverse workforce of tomorrow while driving more excitement about careers in cybersecurity.”
“For decades, we have relied on the same recruitment tactics to close the cybersecurity talent gap,” said Michael Alicea, chief human resources officer at Trellix. “Our lack of diversity is holding us back. The HBCU Career Program will open new pathways for those seeking purposeful careers and introduce fresh, diverse perspectives to the industry.”
For more information on the HBCU Career Program please visit: https://staysafeonline.org/programs/hbcu-see-yourself-in-cyber/. For more information on the National Cybersecurity Alliance, please visit: www.staysafeonline.org.
About the National Cybersecurity Alliance:
The National Cybersecurity Alliance is a non-profit organization on a mission to create a more secure, interconnected world. We advocate for the safe use of all technology and educate everyone on how best to protect ourselves, our families, and our organizations from cybercrime. We create strong partnerships between governments and corporations to amplify our message and to foster a greater “digital” good.
National Cybersecurity Alliance’s core efforts include Cybersecurity Awareness Month (October); Data Privacy Day (Jan. 28); and CyberSecure My Business™, which offers webinars, web resources and workshops to help businesses be resistant to and resilient from cyberattacks. For more information, please visit https://staysafeonline.org.
About Proofpoint:
Proofpoint, Inc. is a leading cybersecurity and compliance company that protects organizations’ greatest assets and biggest risks: their people. With an integrated suite of cloud-based solutions, Proofpoint helps companies around the world stop targeted threats, safeguard their data, and make their users more resilient against cyber attacks. Leading organizations of all sizes, including more than half of the Fortune 1000, rely on Proofpoint for people-centric security and compliance solutions that mitigate their most critical risks across email, the cloud, social media, and the web. More information is available at www.proofpoint.com.
About Quanta Services:
Quanta Services is a leading specialized contracting services company, delivering comprehensive infrastructure solutions for the utility, communications, pipeline and energy industries. Quanta's comprehensive services include designing, installing, repairing and maintaining energy and communications infrastructure. With operations throughout the United States, Canada, Australia and select other international markets, Quanta has the manpower, resources and expertise to safely complete projects that are local, regional, national or international in scope. For more information, visit www.quantaservices.com.
About Dell Technologies:
Dell Technologies (NYSE:DELL) helps organizations and individuals build their digital future and transform how they work, live, and play. The company provides customers with the industry’s broadest and most innovative technology and services portfolio for the data era.
About Trellix:
Trellix is a global company redefining the future of cybersecurity and soulful work. The company’s open and native extended detection and response (XDR) platform helps organizations confronted by today’s most advanced threats gain confidence in the protection and resilience of their operations. Trellix, along with an extensive partner ecosystem, accelerates technology innovation through machine learning and automation to empower over 40,000 business and government customers with living security. More at https://trellix.com.
