Legacy 2017 Miami: Top Black Educators Issue | Page 12

12BB
AN INDEPENDENT SUPPLEMENT BY MIA MEDIA & COMMUNICATIONS GROUP TO THE MIAMI HERALD
MONDAY, JULY 17, 2017
FMU’s ‘Cyber’ Program Offers IT certifications; Promises High-paying Jobs
By Aisha Mannings
network courses.
“The Cyber
Warrior Diversity
program is an
example of our
commitment to
providing long
term and relevant
career pathways
to students. We
are building a
space in cyber
security and
computer
informa�on
Student instructor Eric Watters leads the discussion during this evening class at
technology for
FMU's Cyber Warrior Diversity Center, located at the Miami Gardens campus.
students at FMU
Florida Memorial University’s (FMU) new
and the community,” says Dr. Ceeon Smith,
Cyber Warrior Diversity Center offers
communica�ons director at the Miami
cu�ng-edge technology training for
Gardens campus.
students to earn various IT cer�fica�ons and
The program is also a gateway program
a bachelor’s degree in cyber security. FMU
for students who want to pursue their
launched the program May 16. The program
educa�on further and enroll in FMU to earn
is offered to FMU students as well as people
a Bachelor’s degree. FMU has partnered
in the community who are not enrolled as
with Lily Founda�on, UNCF, the Miami Dade
part �me or full �me students, but want to
Economic Advocacy Trust (MDEAT), and
earn IT cer�fica�ons such as A+ and other
Digit All Systems via Digit All City (an
non-profit org. that helps teach technology
in urban areas) to implement this program.
Digit All City also has a mentor/protégé
program with Northrop Grumman, a top
global security company to develop the
Cyber Warrior Diversity program. FMU is the
third HBCU to have such a program, a�er
Morgan State University and Coppin State
University.
“One of the goals of MDEAT is to ensure
that the African American community
par�cipates equitably in the job market and
business opportuni�es of Miami Dade,” says
Rickelle Williams, MDEAT’s Economic
Empowerment Manager. “This program will
achieve such goals so that students can enter
the tech industry to obtain high wages and
salaries.”
Lloyd’s of London says cybera�acks cost
companies more than $400 billion a year.
The London insurance market reports a
shortage of talent in cyber security.
According to payscale.com, the median
income for an entry level IT security posi�on
is $63,000. Forbes reports that in 2016 there
were over 1 million posi�ons in cyber
security and cyber security execu�ves
earned an average of $233,000.
Eric Wa�ers is a prime example of how
such programs can lead to success. Under
Digit All Systems, founded by Lance Lucas in
Bal�more, Eric learned about cyber security,
networks, and received various
cer�fica�ons.
“I went from working at Chick-fil-a in
Bal�more making $8 an hour to fixing
computers and earning $800 a week,” says
Wa�ers. “I received my A+ cer�fica�on in
four months and I knew I wanted to pursue
this as a career. I also like teaching others
what I’ve learned and I helped my friends in
my networking class pass their cer�fica�on
tests.”
Wa�ers is now co-teaching a network
course to students at FMU’s Cyber Security
Diversity Warrior Center while earning a
Bachelor’s degree at FMU in Computer
Science and Cyber Security.
“My ideal job would be a data
penetra�on tester, which requires that you
know how to code, maintain, and breach
networking systems, kind of like being paid
to hack into systems and improve their
security system.”
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