Owensboro Community and Technical College

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OCTC/UofL Cybersecurity Certificate

Free for Veterans & First Responders

by Bernie Hale

Owensboro, KY (07/16/2021) — Owensboro Community and Technical College (OCTC) is joining forces with the University of Louisville and other colleges nation-wide this fall to offer an online Cybersecurity Workforce Certificate program funded by the National Security Agency. OCTC was chosen to participate in this project because of the college's earned designation as a Center for Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense.

Cheryl Purdy, the local project lead, added, "Multiple OCTC staff members were involved in the development of the curriculum, which is offered completely online. The program is asynchronous, which means there are no scheduled class meetings. This allows participants to complete the modules at times that are convenient for them. Although fully online, instructors are available throughout the term for virtual office hours and for assistance with any questions or issues."

The Cybersecurity Workforce Certificate program term is six months, during which participants may complete a total of 24 modules. In addition to the foundational modules, some of the module topics include: artificial intelligence, cyber threat hunting, network security, data mining, blockchain, digital forensics, database security, cloud security, IoT, post quantum cryptography, risk analysis, and robotics process automation analysis.

In addition, participants will be able to earn industry-recognized badges from tech leaders such as Google, Microsoft, and IBM.

As a part of the National Security Agency grant, first responders and veterans can participate in the program at no cost. Other community members are also welcome to apply, and the program fee is $1500.

"This is a great opportunity for veterans and first responders to get the latest training and skill up for the future. The range of module topics is timely for today's competitive marketplace" added Scott Williams, OCTC President.

Purdy states, "As the reliance upon technology has grown exponentially over the past two decades, so has the need for securing these assets. This coalition project provides an opportunity for our community to enhance their knowledge and as such, be better prepared to protect those technology assets."

The pilot project is accepting a total of 200 students with staggered start dates between August and February. For more information or to apply, please contact Lindsey Kafer at lindsey.kafer@kctcs.edu or 270.686.3781.

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Owensboro Community & Technical College is one of the sixteen community and technical colleges that make up the Kentucky Community & Technical College System. OCTC serves the KY counties of Daviess, Hancock, Ohio and McLean. OCTC has three campuses in Daviess County and a Center and Annex in Hancock County. OCTC strives to serve the communities in the service area by providing associate degree education for transfer, state of the art technical education for students focusing on entering the workforce, customized business and industry solutions through the Workforce Solutions division, and adult education and business and industry testing through the SkillTrain unit.

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The Kentucky Community and Technical College System is the Commonwealth's largest postsecondary institution with 16 colleges and more than 70 campuses. We also are Kentucky's largest provider of workforce training and online education. Through partnerships with business and industry, we align our programs to meet the needs of local employers. We help students fulfill their dreams of creating a better life through programs that lead directly to jobs or help them transfer to one of our four-year partners.

Connect with OCTC: Owensboro.kctcs | Facebook.com/owensboroctc | Twitter@OCTC_Tweets | Instagram OwensboroCTC

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