United States Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand held a press conference on Friday, Nov. 15 at 11 a.m. in the Administration Building’s atrium to promote the Cyber Service Academy she pioneered.
The event began with Interim President Richard L. McCormick giving a speech highlighting the University’s accomplishments and research in cybersecurity, along with the types of educational opportunities offered at Stony Brook in the field.
Afterward, Gillibrand encouraged students to apply for the U.S. Department of Defense’s (DoD) Cyber Service Academy. This is a scholarship program that gives students the opportunity to receive full college tuition in return for public service in the DoD or the Intelligence Community (IC).
Gillibrand’s work for the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services established the program. For each year the program covers tuition costs, students are expected to serve in the DoD or IC for a year; if students decide not to serve, they will have to pay back what was covered.
Gillibrand said the DoD has 28,000 unfilled positions in military and civil cyber roles and that the program hopes to bring more innovators into the field. There are thousands of vacant positions in departments such as the U.S. Space Force, the Central Intelligence Agency and the National Security Agency.
“We urgently need to attract a new generation of cybersecurity and technology professionals to help keep our democracy safe and to be the inventors and solutions of our future,” Gillibrand said.
She highlighted a particular incident a few weeks ago where Chinese hackers infiltrated phone systems and targeted numerous high-profile political and government officials such as President-elect Donald Trump, Vice President-elect J.D. Vance and some of Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign staff.
“Events like these are deeply disturbing, especially in the middle of an election, [and] concerns about foreign interference and influence are very high right now,” Gillibrand said. “We just don’t have enough cyber security professionals in our federal, state and local governments to adequately address this threat.”
Gillibrand shared that her goal is to create a building for the Cyber Service Academy in New York City, similar to the U.S. Military Academy West Point and the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps. As of now, 24 institutions in New York State are eligible to offer students to apply for the scholarship program.
Gillibrand then introduced Vice President for Research Kevin Gardner, who thanked her for her leadership in cybersecurity.
New York State Sen. Mario R. Mattera also thanked Gillibrand and explained the importance of the new program. He said it not only provides an opportunity for students to receive financial assistance to fight the growing issue of cyber crimes, but it also ensures them a job after they graduate.
“Threats from cyber crimes grow with every advance in technology and education. This [program] provides our students with help to build their lives while helping in the fight against cyber criminals,” Mattera said.
Following Mattera’s speech, the floor was then opened up to questioning from attendees. Desiree D’Iorio, an American homefront reporter at WSHU Public Radio, asked Gillibrand whether this program would work together with the U.S. Military Academy West Point.
Gillibrand clarified that these two academies are separate from one another, detailing her program’s availability to schools across the country and how each school must individually apply for the program. Gillibrand also noted that these schools could help create physical buildings for the Cyber Service Academy in New York City.
“There’s 600 schools across the nation that are eligible … and any school that has the right curriculum [can] apply to be part of this … Ideally, we’ll have brick and mortar somewhere in the country, maybe even 10 bricks and mortars across the country, [in] schools like Stony Brook [that] could have designated National Cyber Academies linked to it,” Gillibrand said.
D’Iorio also asked Gillibrand how many spots are available in the new program. Gillibrand responded that while 5,000 people will be able to apply this year, only 1,000 applicants will be accepted. Last year, when the program was first created, there were 750 applicants and only 150 were accepted.
Another attendee asked Gillibrand about challenges she has encountered or continues to face while developing the program, to which she replied that the only problem has been getting the word out to students.
