Li-Chiou Chen, Ph.D. - US grants

Computer Science (31)

The objectives of this project are to generate a new teaching tool SWEET (Secure WEb dEvelopment Teaching) in secure web development for undergraduate students in computing field; to create a portable teaching laboratory; to evaluate the effectiveness of the teaching tool in improving students' learning experiences; and to foster collaboration between academia and industry partners. SWEET provides structured lectures, laboratory exercises, and project modules for building problem solving skills.

This project is conducted collaboratively by Pace University (Pace), the lead institution, and City University of New York - City College of Technology (CUNY City Tech). Pace develops the SWEET platform and both, Pace and CUNY City Tech, develop teaching modules and build their own portable teaching laboratories to incorporate SWEET in several undergraduate courses. The project supports the training of a new generation of computing professionals who understand and are able to solve security problems occurring in web development.

This project broadens students' exposure to a modern, practical software development through realistic web security scenarios from industry. SWEET is disseminated to broad audience including industry partners, academic partners, web sites and conferences. It bridges the gap between the current computing curricula and industry expectations from graduates in the computing disciplines. It has a potential to attract undergraduate students by providing a new, interesting and innovative teaching tool in secure web development.

This project establishes a Scholarship for Service (SFS) program at Pace University (Pace) over a four-year period. The program provides full scholarships for two years to undergraduate students interested in studying information assurance. Scholarship recipients are required to enter the federal workforce upon graduation. To increase diversity, the program is recruiting potential scholarship candidates from students currently enrolled at Pace as well as from Pace's academic partners, particularly those attending minority institutions. This SFS program educates students to become information assurance professionals with interdisciplinary backgrounds as they are required to take courses in both information assurance and in a second discipline such as accounting or criminal justice. The graduates are therefore able to conduct tasks in areas such as computer security risk analysis, information technology auditing, cyber crime investigation and computer forensics. The program also supports educational activities to promote awareness among the general student body of the information assurance discipline and related careers in the federal government. These activities include paper competitions, research seminars, and industry outreach and collaboration. The overall impact of this program is to extend information assurance education to students with broader backgrounds and to produce a corps of information assurance professionals for the federal workforce.

This project aims at increasing the number of undergraduate students studying information assurance and pursuing careers in the field. The project is led by Pace University and collaborates with four partner colleges: State University of New York - Rockland Community College, State University of New York - Westchester Community College, City University of New York - New York City College of Technology, and City University of New York - Borough of Manhattan Community College, of which the latter two are minority serving institutions.

A set of activities designed for both faculty and students fosters collaboration among the participating institutions, attracts students to study information assurance, and provides faculty with development opportunities in the information assurance area. These activities include student information assurance workshops, collaborative student/faculty research teams, a community college/university faculty collaborative working group and faculty development workshops.

The project is expanding the information assurance student pipeline at Pace University through outreach to community colleges. In addition, this partnership is establishing, implementing and evaluating the infrastructure needed for such pathways, and thus is providing a reference model which can be adopted by other schools. The overall impact of the project is to produce more and better prepared information assurance professionals.

Pace University proposes to add four new cohorts of undergraduate and graduate students to their existing CyberCorps(R) Scholarship for Service (SFS) program in cybersecurity with a multiple pathway approach to recruit and guide students through different academic programs based on their background and interests. With support for either two or three years, all Pace scholars will graduate with a Bachelor's degree, a Master's degree, a five-year combined degree, or a PhD. All scholars will fulfill core curriculum requirements in both cybersecurity and mathematics, as well as interdisciplinary curriculum requirements in either criminal justice or business management. The scholars will also be expected to complete research projects and professional development activities as outlined through competency-based advisement. With a solid background in computing and flexibility to accommodate different talents, the program will help meeting the diverse demands of government employment in the field of cybersecurity. The scholars will be able to apply not only computing knowledge but also knowledge from a relevant discipline, such as mathematics, criminal justice, or business administration. The graduates will therefore be able to conduct tasks in specialty areas defined in the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) Workforce Framework such as information assurance compliance, network security administration, or digital forensics.

The objectives of the Pace CyberCorps project are 1) to produce fourteen to seventeen cybersecurity professionals entering the government workforce upon graduation over five years; 2) to prepare cybersecurity professionals with diverse educational backgrounds by using a multiple pathway approach; 3) to support diversity in the field of information technology by providing opportunities for students from underrepresented groups; 4) to mentor non-SFS institutions and their students through academic partnerships; 5) to strengthen collaboration between Pace and its government partners, and 6) to generate interest in becoming cybersecurity professionals among broader student populations both at Pace and at our partner institutions. The broader impacts of Pace CyberCorps include outreach activities to increase the number of students studying in cybersecurity who are from groups underrepresented in information technology; broaden the impact of the program through academic partnerships; and mentor non-SFS institutions and provide scholarship opportunities for their graduates.