New interdisciplinary center to address critical challenges in cybersecurity

KALAMAZOO, Mich.—As the need to protect data from cybersecurity threats continues to rise, Western Michigan University is addressing the growing problem through its new Cybersecurity Studies Center.

The center approaches these critical challenges through education, outreach, training and research and is managed by the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the Haworth College of Business. 

“Over time, we expect this center to create synergies that will enable faculty to apply for grants, develop publications and present at professional conferences,” says Dr. Satish Deshpande, dean of the Haworth College of Business. “Simultaneously, the center will provide students with increased opportunities for scholarships, internships and their own research pursuits. By leveraging related talent and resources, we are entering our most exciting era yet for cybersecurity at WMU.”

Because cybersecurity impacts all industries, the center collaborates with multiple areas to address a variety of needs.

“The center highlights how truly interdisciplinary our cybersecurity initiatives are at WMU,” says Dr. Steve Butt, dean of the WMU College of Engineering and Applied Sciences. “We are building strong connections with faculty across campus, industry partners, professionals looking to advance their skills, and both graduate and undergraduate students.”

The center is led by Jason Johnson, faculty specialist of computer science, and Dr. Alan Rea, professor of business information systems. It focuses on the following activities:

• Building on existing partnerships through activities such as high school visits and other collaborative ventures to benefit both students and faculty.
• Offering professional workshops that provide training to businesses and organizations to better increase their overall security.
• Planning and participating in conferences such as WMU’s Cybersecurity Summit and the Midwest Collegiate Computing Conference.
• Preparing IT and cybersecurity professionals to pursue industry certifications such as CompTIA Security+ and ISC2 CISSP.
• Supporting interdisciplinary research in areas such as risk management, social engineering, malware protection, secure Internet of Things, and more.
• Forming multi-disciplinary research groups that include faculty as well as undergraduate and graduate students.

For more information visit the Cybersecurity Studies Center website or contact Johnson and Rea.

WMU’s offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in cybersecurity. Read more about these programs.

For more WMU news, arts and events visit WMU News online.