Sinclair Community College and Secure Cyber Defense Empower Students with Advanced Firewall Equipment

Sinclair Community College and representatives from Secure Cyber Defense have partnered to provide students with critical hands-on training through new, advanced firewall equipment. On Friday, May 24, 2024, Sinclair students got a chance to see the new equipment and learn how they will use it in the classroom.

Sinclair used $320,000 in Regionally Aligned Priorities in Developing Skills (RAPIDS) funding through the Ohio Department of Higher Education to support the purchase of firewall equipment from Secure Cyber Defense based in Moraine, Ohio. The equipment will be used to give Sinclair students vital hands-on cybersecurity training. 

Part of the funding is also being used to introduce three Fortinet Certified Professional (FCP) certifications that will provide students with critical skills in the following areas: Network Security, Public Cloud Security, and Security Operations. Sinclair Community College is the first higher education institution in Ohio to join the Fortinet Academic Partner Program that bridges the gap between learning and careers by providing students with access to industry-recognized Fortinet Network Security Expert (NSE) Certification program’s curriculum and training.

Secure Cyber Defense is a long-time partner of Sinclair Community College that provides expert cybersecurity consulting and managed detection and response services to manufacturing companies, financial institutions, local governments, government contractors, K-12 schools and universities. The collaboration has allowed Sinclair to equip classrooms with state-of-the-art technology, provide internship opportunities for students, and externship opportunities for faculty. 

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of information security analysts is projected to grow 32% through the year 2032 with approximately 16,800 openings for information projected each year. 

Over the past five years, nearly 2,400 Sinclair Community College students have earned computer science and information technology degrees and certifications. To learn more about program offerings, visit Sinclair.edu/Computer-Information.

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