On Wednesday, the House Committee on Homeland Security held a hearing, “Finding 500,000: Addressing America’s Cyber Workforce Gap.” Witnesses included Eric Hysen, chief information officer at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS); Leslie Beavers, principal deputy chief information officer at the Department of Defense (DOD); Rodney Peterson, director of the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education within the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST); and Seeyew Mo, assistant national cyber director at the Office of the National Cyber Director (ONCD).
The hearing primarily discussed the various methods in which new employees could enter the cyber workforce, and how to professionally train existing staff to strengthen their cyber skills. Several members of the Committee discussed the benefits of job-training programs that help potential employees without four-year degrees to enter the cyber workforce, specifically in government agencies such as DHS or DOD. Chairman Garbarino, filling in for Chairman Green, emphasized that the need for cyber talent is greatest within government agencies.
The National Cyber Workforce and Education Strategy, unveiled in 2023, was a key topic of discussion during the hearing. The Administration recently released a report on that strategy’s implementation, “National Cyber Workforce and Education Strategy: Initial Stages of Implementation.”
Both the Committee and several witnesses acknowledged this strategy's comprehensive approach to addressing both immediate and long-term cyber workforce needs. A key component to this strategy is collaboration with stakeholders to develop a skills-based approach to recruitment and development in cyber roles, which was discussed at length in the hearing. The ecosystem of stakeholders that work to uplift the cyber workforce includes employers, trade associations, government, economic and workforce development entities and educators. These connections help to foster accessible learning opportunities.
Another opportunity and example of how these stakeholders collaborate discussed in both the hearing and Strategy is the option to attend a “Cyber Clinic.” Cyber Clinics support communities and small governments with cyber risk assessment and planning assistance, recruiting over 200 students to learn while they work.
Seeyew Mo also shared his experiences with different programs he had seen across the country to promote cyber skills and jobs including CTE curriculum focused on skills like pattern recognition and problem solving, which are foundational to more specialized programs. Those skills are a foundation for other technical skills – this creates space for hands-on learning and certification done through CTE curriculum. CTE teaches cyber skills at the middle school and high school level. Leslie Beavers also discussed skills-training in community colleges, and the effort to start this training as early as K-12 to adequately prepare students to enter the cyber workforce.
Resources and opportunities mentioned in the hearing were:
Comments