Feds give special cybersecurity status to Terra programs

FREMONT - In Sara Akers' classroom, there's a table where students sit and figure out how to take old computer parts and hardware, put those pieces back together, and make them work.

Akers teaches systems and networking support classes in Terra State Community College's computer information technology division.

Now, students who complete either Terra State's computer information systems degree program or the systems and networking support degree program will get a special cybersecurity designation with their two-year degrees.

Akers said the National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security have designated Terra State  as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Two-Year Education (CAE2Y) through the 2022 academic year.

Terra State is the third community college in Ohio to get the designation, Akers said. She said it would help students attract the attention of employers when they leave school and enter the workforce.

"A lot of schools are getting on the bandwagon to get this one," Akers said.

Haley Crabtree teaches computer information systems classes at the college, Akers said, Both professors put together the application to get the designation.

Akers said both federal agencies looked at how cybersecurity is being taught in Terra State classes and promoted on the campus and in the community.

She said Terra State students held a public seminar last fall in which they talked to residents about the importance of securing their computer networks and mobile devices at home.

Students who complete Terra State's programs will receive a certificate with NSA and Department of Homeland Security stamps stating they went through a certified cyber defense program.

Akers said there are, on average, 10-to-12 students in her systems and networking support classes per semester.

President Jerome Webster said the designation was another example of Terra State's desire to provide a hands-on experience in its classrooms.

dacarson@gannett.com

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Twitter: @DanielCarson7