Bristol Community College received a $267,787 Cooperative Agreement from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) under the Science, Technology, Business and/or Education Outreach program (CFDA 11.620), effective October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2027. The award funds the Southeastern Massachusetts Cyber-AI Workforce Innovation Pathway Project, which develops and delivers a new cybersecurity and artificial intelligence (AI) curriculum leading to industry-recognized credentials aligned with the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) Framework. Key deliverables include a formalized 2+2 academic and internship pathway between Bristol Community College and Bridgewater State University, a 120-hour paid internship program where participants develop AI-powered phishing simulations, compliance assessments, and interactive virtual reality training modules, and creation of VR-based cybersecurity training tools.
The project partners with Bridgewater State University (receiving a $3,750 subaward), cybersecurity firm DTP, and VR developer Dogwood Gaming to co-design the education-to-career pipeline. Anticipated outcomes include completion of NICE-aligned coursework and internships by 16 to 20 students, production of industry-ready cybersecurity training tools, and development of a "lessons learned" report to inform national cyber-AI education standards. The initiative aims to address regional and national cybersecurity workforce shortages by equipping community college students with competencies in compliance, threat response, and immersive security awareness training, while providing small businesses and local governments access to trained cybersecurity professionals.