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The National Centers of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance Education Program (CAE/IAE) is open to nationally or regionally accredited four-year colleges and graduate-level universities. The mission of a nationally accredited institution must be in Information Assurance (IA) or a similar area. Applications must be submitted electronically via the on-line application process. Applications are assessed against a specific set of criteria, (PDF Attached), which are intended to measure the depth and maturity of programs of instruction in IA at the graduate and undergraduate levels. Applicants must clearly demonstrate how they meet each of the criteria. Minimum requirements for each of the criteria must be met to obtain designation. Successful applicants are designated as a CAE/IAE for a period of five academic years, after which they must successfully reapply to retain the designation. The criteria are reviewed annually and strengthened as appropriate to keep pace with the evolving nature of IA. (Designation as a National Center of Academic Excellence in IA Education does not carry a commitment of funding from the National Security Agency nor from the Department of Homeland Security.) All schools must re-designate after 5 years - the criteria for measuring CAE/IAE for re-designation is attached. Prerequisite: Prior to submitting an application for the National Centers of Academic Excellence in IA Education Program, IA courseware must be certified under the IA Courseware Evaluation Program as meeting the Committee on National Security Systems (CNSS) Training Standards, and the certification must be current. Specifically, certification for CNSS Training Standard 4011 is required, and certification for at least one additional CNSS Training Standard (4012, 4013, 4014, 4015, 4016, or subsequent standards) is required.
MINIMUM POINTS REQUIRED TO QUALIFY AS A CAE/IAE = 145. Criterion 1: Outreach/CollaborationProvide evidence of partnerships in IA education with minority colleges and universities, two-year community colleges, or technical schools. Partnerships may include: shared curriculum and resources (IA teaching material provided), shared faculty (faculty on curriculum committee or teaching), and reciprocity of credits. (Example of evidence: memorandum of agreement between both parties) The U. S. Department of Education refers to minority colleges and universities as including Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic Serving Institutions, and Tribal Colleges and Universities.
Overall Point Value: 8 Minimum Required Return to table | Return to the Top Criteria 2: IA Treated as a Multidisciplinary ScienceThe academic program demonstrates that IA is not treated as a separate discipline, but as a multidisciplinary science with the body of IA knowledge incorporated into various disciplines.
Overall Point Value: 10 Minimum Required Return to table | Return to the Top Criterion 3: University Encourages the Practice of IAThe academic program demonstrates how the university encourages the practice of IA, not merely that IA is taught. (An example of a government-based IA security plan may be found at http://csrc.nist.gov/organizations/fissea/2005-conference/presentations/Clark/Clark-paper.pdf). A paper on effectively teaching how to write a security plan may be found at http://csrc.nist.gov/organizations/fissea/conference/2005-conference/presentations/Clark/Clark-paper.pdf.) These examples are not intended to replace an existing university security plan.
Overall Point Value: 17 Minimum Required Return to table | Return to the Top Criterion 4: Academic Program Encourages Student Research in IAThe academic program encourages student research in IA, since research fuels the relevancy and currency of IA curricula. Provide examples.
Overall Point Value: 20 Minimum Required Return to table | Return to the Top Criterion 5: Faculty Active in Current IA Practice and ResearchIt is clearly demonstrated that the faculty is active in current IA practice and research, contributes to IA literature, and are members of IA professional societies or attend professional IA conferences.
Overall Point Value: 20 Minimum Required Return to table | Return to the Top Criteria 6: IA ResourcesThe faculty and students have access to IA resources and reference materials.
Return to table | Return to the Top Criterion 7: IA Academic Program is Robust and ActiveAcademic program, within a nationally or regionally accredited four-year college or graduate-level university, has an area of study or focus area in IA. Identify the courses required for each area, and provide syllabus, enrollment data for current academic year (not projected), and actual graduation data (not projected) for the past two academic years. Courses must be verifiable through on-line course catalog. Focus on IA at the B.S. level
Focus on IA at the M.S. level
Focus on IA at the Ph.D. level
Overall Point Value: 15 Minimum Required Return to table | Return to the Top Criterion 8: Declared Center for IA EducationFor the purposes of the criteria, the word "center" is used in a general sense. The university must have a formal organization where faculty and students can share their research, collaborate, and interact. The university has a declared "center" for IA education or a center for IA research from which the IA curriculum is emerging. The center may be school- or university-based. (Example: The Computer Science Department has an officially designated "Center for IA Studies" with a clear link to and sponsorship by the College of Engineering Sciences, with a charter signed at least at the College of Engineering level.) Provide documentation of the designation of the Center (e.g., the charter), signed by the Dean or higher, and the mission statement.
Overall Point Value: 20 Minimum Required Return to table | Return to the Top Criterion 9: Number of IA Faculty and Course LoadUniversity IA faculty consists of a sufficient number of full-time IA faculty members and additional members (may be part-time, adjunct, visiting professors, etc.) teaching at least one IA course. For the purposes of these criteria, full-time faculty may be defined as a professor dedicated to teaching three IA courses per semester, or two IA courses with research, or one IA course with research and with advisees at Masters and Doctoral Level. Shared and cross-departmental appointments for part-time and adjunct faculty may be counted, as well as institutional agreements for cooperative exchange of adjunct faculty between universities. This criterion requires a letter signed by the Dean (or a university official at a level higher than Dean) identifying the faculty and teaching workload and a link to a biography or curriculum vitae for each faculty member.
Overall Point Value: 20 Minimum Required |
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Date Posted: Jan 15, 2009 | Last Modified: Aug 17, 2012 | Last Reviewed: July 30, 2012 |