WHATCOM COMMUNITY COLLEGE WELCOMES WHITE HOUSE OFFICIALS FROM THE OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT TO ENGAGE WITH ITS STUDENTS, FACULTY, AND COMMUNITY LEADERS ON THE FUTURE OF CAREERS IN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

Bellingham, Washington. — On Monday, October 23, 2023, Whatcom Community College (WCC), welcomed White House officials from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), including the Director for the (OPM), Kiran Ahuja, and Office of National Cyber Director (ONCD) to engage with its students, faculty, and community leaders on the future of careers in the Federal Government. This event was hosted by the Whatcom Community Foundation.

 Representatives from both OPM and ONCD heard firsthand from students and young professionals and also met with WCC’s Cybersecurity students to learn more about WCC’s Cybersecurity Program.

“WCC appreciated the opportunity for students to engage in conversations to help shape the future careers in Federal Government; and values conversations with OPM, ONCD, and community leaders on how we best support a diverse and distributed workforce,” said Dr. Kathi Hiyane-Brown. “In addition to maintaining its Center of Academic Excellence (CAE), Cyber Defense designation programs for its students, WCC is proud to serve as host institution to two key National Cybersecurity centers, and the Cybersecurity Center of Excellence (CCoE) for Washington State. We are strongly committed to working with our own Washington state communities as well as the nation to establish educational pathways to meet both existing and future cybersecurity workforce demands.”

Photo at event from left to right: Seeyew Mo, Assistant National Cyber Director for Workforce, Education and Awareness at The White House; Dr. Kathi Hiyane-Brown, Whatcom Community College President; Mauri Ingram, President/CEO Whatcom Community Foundation; Kiran Ahuja, Director for Office of Personnel Management; Paul Francis, Executive Director for Council of Presidents, Washington State Board of Community and Technical Colleges.

WCC is host institution to the National Science Foundation (NSF) funded National Cybersecurity Training & Education (NCyTE) Center and the National Security Agency (NSA) funded CAE Candidate National Center (CCNC) and maintains its strong leadership position in shaping the future of the cybersecurity workforce education.

Earlier this year, WCC College President, Dr. Kathi Hiyane-Brown participated on the Atlantic Council’s panel discussion about the launch of the National Cyber Workforce and Education Strategy at the Atlantic Council headquarters in Washington D.C. The panel was moderated by Safa Shahwan Edwards, Deputy Director of the Cyber Statecraft Initiative, Atlantic Council, and featured White House officials, including a keynote address from Kemba Walden, Acting National Cyber Director, and opening remarks from Rob Shriver, Deputy Director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Those were followed by a panel discussion with Dr. Diana Burley, Vice Provost for Research and Innovation and Professor at American University; Rob Duhart, Vice President, Deputy CISO at Walmart; Dr. Kathi Hiyane-Brown, President of Whatcom Community College; and Camille Stewart Gloster, Deputy National Cyber Director for Technology and Ecosystem Security.

Here is a link to the recording: The National Cyber Workforce and Education Strategy: Unleashing America’s cyber talent - Atlantic Council

About NCyTE: The National Cybersecurity Training & Education (NCyTE) Center is funded by the National Science Foundation. NCyTE's mission is to advance cybersecurity education in the U.S. to support tomorrow’s workforce. The NCyTE Center is based in Bellingham, WA at Whatcom Community College. For more information visit https://www.ncyte.net/.

 About Whatcom: Whatcom Community College (WCC) in Bellingham, Washington is regularly recognized as one of the top community colleges in the nation for student outcomes. The College, a destination for cybersecurity, healthcare and business studies, offers two bachelor of applied science degrees, transfer degrees, career and workforce preparation, online courses, and community education classes. New high school graduates, laid-off workers, seasoned employees, future university students—all students count on WCC to support their academic and career goals. For more information, visit: www.whatcom.edu

 WCC is designated as a Washington state Center of Excellence in Cybersecurity, reflecting WCC’s ongoing commitment to narrowing the gap between cybersecurity employer workforce needs and colleges’ supply of work-ready graduates, now with an added focus on Washington State.