The University of Hawaiʻi West Oʻahu was designated a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education by the National Security Agency and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, becoming the first four-year university in the state to receive this prestigious honor.
UH West Oʻahu offers a bachelor’s degree with a concentration in information security and assurance, the first of its kind at a public institution in Hawaiʻi and the Pacific. In response to national and state needs for graduates with education in cybersecurity, UH West Oʻahu, in cooperation with University of Hawaiʻi Community Colleges, state and federal law enforcement agencies, state security officials and local businesses, developed an expansive security education program.
“We are honored to receive this distinction from the nation’s foremost experts in cybersecurity,” said UH West Oʻahu Interim Chancellor Doris Ching. “The University of Hawaiʻi West Oʻahu prides itself in offering essential programs that fill a community need and provide our graduates with opportunities for fulfilling careers where they make a difference. Our information security and assurance program is a shining example of this.”
“Certification as a Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education is a tremendous honor for our program that will benefit our students for many years,” said Information Security and Assurance Assistant Professor Matthew Chapman. “As our primary mission is to provide all students—including Native Hawaiian, local and regional students—opportunities to prepare for employment in cybersecurity career fields, this certification recognizes our students as cyber defense subject matter experts, who will be leaders in protecting both Hawaiʻi and national critical infrastructure.”
Chapman will receive the National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education certificate on behalf of UH West Oʻahu at the National Cyber Security Summit in Huntsville, Alabama.
Read more about the award and the Cyber Security Coordination Center.
—By Julie Funasaki Yuen
