SCHUMER, GILLIBRAND ANNOUNCE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE APPROPRIATIONS BILL INCLUDES $3 MILLION FOR MOHAWK VALLEY COMMUNITY COLLEGE-AFFILIATED CYBERSECURITY PROJECT

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U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand today announced that the Department of Defense appropriations bill includes $3 million for the Mohawk Valley Community College (MVCC) to perform research alongside the U.S. Air Force which will develop new and better strategies to combat the growing threat of cybersecurity.

"The threat of cyber terrorism against American computer systems is growing day by day," said Schumer.   "This project will make significant strides toward enhancing our country's cybersecurity and will solidify the Mohawk Valley as a center of cyber security development, laying the groundwork for goodpaying, hightech job growth."

"Cybersecurity is a top priority for our national security," Senator Gillibrand said. "These federal dollars will help Mohawk Valley Community College develop the technologies we need to protect our networks, our infrastructure and families across America. Devoting more attention to exploring our technological vulnerabilities and mounting an aggressive defense against cyber attacks and cyber terrorism has become a national security imperative."

"This initiative will help create a key hightech hub in the Mohawk Valley. It will attract and retain talent and prepare our workforce to meet headon the challenges of a changing economy," says Randall J. VanWagoner, Ph.D., President of Mohawk Valley Community College. "This center will house the creative partnerships that grow when priorities align for educational institutions, government, and the private sector. The immediate and longterm benefits include job creation and increased intellectual capital in this growing sector of our economy."

This funding will develop a unique 'Center for Excellence' that will operate through a partnership between MVCC and the United States Air Force Research Laboratory. The center will act as a research and ideas hub for new methods in combating cyber security and preventing a major security breach of the country's technology. Additionally, the initiative will create an accredited training program that will prepare MVCC students for careers in cyber security.     

This week, the appropriations bill for the Department of Defense passed the Defense subcommittee. The legislation will be voted on by the full committee before heading to the floor for a full vote before the Senate. The bill will then proceed to the HouseSenate Conference Committee, before final passage in both chambers, and sent to the President to become law.