RUSTON, La. — Louisiana Tech University’s College of Engineering and Science has received $612,000 in federal funding to support cybersecurity scholarships and expand training in artificial intelligence and security operations, the university announced.
The award from the U.S. Department of War includes approximately $463,000 for Cyber Service Academy scholarships and $149,000 for training capacity. Brad Glisson, a professor of computer science, leads the effort.
Eight students will receive scholarships and stipends through the Cyber Service Academy, which connects cybersecurity education with civilian cyber workforce opportunities at the department.
“Students choosing where to study cybersecurity should be able to see a clear connection between their education and the work they hope to do,” said Collin Wick, dean of the College of Engineering and Science. “This award will help more students afford their degrees, apply their skills to real security challenges before they graduate, and secure better job placement after graduation.”
The funding builds on training offered through Louisiana Tech’s Student Security Operations Center, where students work alongside information technology security professionals and industry partners. Under professional supervision, students analyze security alerts, investigate potential threats and assist with incident triage.
The center also provides workshops, training and support for professional certifications.
Louisiana Tech’s Cybersecurity Applied Innovation Laboratory connects students and faculty with industry partners on research involving digital forensics, malware analysis, artificial intelligence and machine learning. It also supports the university’s collegiate cyber defense competition team.
The award’s capacity-building portion will support additional work involving artificial intelligence and security operations training.
“Students can learn a security concept from a textbook. What they can’t learn there is what to do when an alert fires on a live system and they have to decide whether it’s real,” Glisson said. “That judgment comes from working next to professionals who make those calls every day. The scholarship and the federal service pathway mean students graduate having already done the job, not just studied it.”
According to the university, Louisiana Tech established the nation’s first cyber engineering program in 2012. Its computer science program is the university’s third largest by enrollment.
Louisiana Tech also holds National Security Agency designations as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education and Cyber Research.