Cybersecurity Program Lands Prestigious NSA Designation

The National Security Agency (NSA) has named Eastern Washington University as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Operations (CAE-CO), making Eastern the 22^nd university nationwide to attain this prestigious designation and the only one in the Pacific Northwest to do so.

A National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Operations (CAE-CO) designation marks a university as part of a small, elite group trusted by the U.S. government to deliver the nation’s most advanced cybersecurity training. The program, led by the NSA with support from federal partners, evaluates institutions on rigorous criteria that go far beyond standard cybersecurity curricula.

Stu Steiner, an associate professor of computer science and director of the EWU Cybersecurity Institute, says with the classification, NSA identifies universities that can train people to defend the country against sophisticated cyber threats.

“The CAE-CO designation is rare, difficult to earn, and serves as a national signal that an institution is equipped to produce graduates capable of working on some of the most sensitive and technically demanding cybersecurity challenges,” Steiner says.

A CAE-CO designation opens doors that aren’t available to typical cybersecurity programs by placing an institution inside a federally recognized tier of cyber operations training. That status unlocks both exclusive funding pathways and student opportunities tied specifically to the nation’s cyberoperations workforce pipeline. Only students from a recognized CAE-CO school are invited to a summer academy sponsored by the NSA where students work in a hands-on environment with industry professionals in all areas of cyber operations.

In addition, the new classification provides EWU with the following opportunities:

• Priority access to competitive federal grants. Several NSA- and U.S. Department of Defense-aligned programs reserve or prioritize funding for CAE-CO institutions because they are pre-vetted as capable of delivering advanced cyberoperations training.
• Eligibility for specialized research collaborations. Agencies and federally funded research centers often limit certain cyberoperations projects to CAE designated partners due to the sensitive nature of the work.
• Stronger positioning for regional and national workforce initiatives, Federal and state agencies frequently build training consortia, pilot programs, and capacity building efforts around CAE-CO schools because they meet the highest technical standards.

Student opportunities tied specifically to CAE-CO programs include:

• Access to internships and scholarships restricted to CAE institutions. Certain NSA internships give preference or exclusive eligibility to students enrolled at CAE-designated schools.
• Pathways into national security roles. CAE-CO students are often fast tracked for consideration by federal agencies because the designation signals they have been trained in the advanced skills required for sensitive cyberoperations work.
• Participation in classified or high security training environments. Some experiential learning opportunities, competitions, and cyber ranges are available only to CAE-CO institutions due to clearance requirements and the nature of the material.

The new classification builds upon years of success for the EWU Cybersecurity Institute, during which the program has placed consistently in national competitions. Last spring, the EWU team placed second in the National Center for Academic Excellence Cyber Games National Invitational. The second-place finish followed a big win at the same competition two years earlier.

“Our students have consistently demonstrated their skills on a national stage, competing against and succeeding against the most prestigious cybersecurity programs in the nation,” Steiner says. “The new designation is a product of sustained success in training these essential cyber experts of the future.”