The Enterprise Services Center (ESC) has been working with Academia to help cultivate cybersecurity talent. In partnership with the Oklahoma City Community College (OCCC), ESC spends a considerable amount of time influencing the curriculum, educating the students on what to expect in the workforce, and preparing them for jobs in the cybersecurity field. This partnership has improved the qualifications of graduates coming out of the program and has been feeder for ESC - tapping into a supply of new, high-performing students as potential employees. There have been several successful graduates of this program who are now working for the FAA.

Oklahoma City Community College is dedicated to improving student achievement and reinforcing the cybersecurity workforce of Oklahoma City. OCCC has been recognized as a National Center of Academic Excellence 2-Year (CAE2Y) in Information Assurance by the Department of Homeland Security and the National Security Agency. They have also established a partnership with the Enterprise Services Center, because ESC provides an assortment of critical government information technology and financial management services to many federal agencies. Through this partnership, OCCC provides additional value to the education that students receive. Employees from ESC team up with OCCC’s Computer Science (CS) department in a variety of ways. Some members serve on the CS Advisory Board that assists with curriculum reviews and providing guidance on developing Oklahoma’s skilled computer science workforce. Their input helps the OCCC faculty foster talented IT professionals who are ready to enter the cybersecurity workforce. ESC employees work with students by preparing resume writing workshops and mock-interview sessions where students are given recommendations on forming a brand for themselves. Such collaborative efforts have brought many cybersecurity graduates into ESC employment, and into many other businesses across the state. This exemplary partnership is an example of how industry and higher education can find ways to mutually meet state and federal workforce needs, while concentrating on student success, both inside and outside of the classroom.