NETWORKS

Wayne County Community College District (WCCCD), in conjunction with Merit Network, the Michigan Cyber Range and Mile2, recently hosted a groundbreaking veteran's retraining program. The 13-week program-the first of its kind in the nation-prepared a group of military veterans for a career in cybersecurity. 

"We are very proud of this program," said Don Welch, president and CEO of Merit Network. "It meets two important needs: helping our veterans and effective cybersecurity training." 

17 students participated in the retraining program. The veterans were selected based on their experience and aptitude, in conjunction with Wayne County's veterans affairs office. 

Cybersecurity jobs are in high demand, and the intensive curriculum prepared veterans for challenges faced by cybersecurity professionals. The program included five weeks of instructor-led curriculum, four weeks of hands-on lab experience, three weeks of Alphaville capture-the-flag exercises, and a week of resume writing and interview skills development. Students began on October 13th and graduated on January 30th. 

WCCCD hosted the cybersecurity program in its new state-of-the-art cybersecurity lab at the Fort Street Campus in downtown Detroit. Merit also hosted the students for capture the flag exercises at the Michigan Cyber Range.

"Merit and the Michigan Cyber Range are very proud to have been a part of this pilot program," said Joe Adams, vice president for research and cybersecurity for Merit. "As a veteran I know the challenges that these students are facing, and I am very pleased to contribute to their transition from the service to the civilian workforce." 

Instructors from Mile2 taught the five cybersecurity certification courses that are part of the program and provided instructor support and lab guidance to students. Mile2 also provided free lab materials and certification tests to students. Mile2 is accredited by the Committee on National Security Systems (CNSS) and has been mapped by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). 

The five cybersecurity courses taught included: Certified Security Sentinel Training, Certified Information Systems Security Officer, Certified Professional Ethical Hacker, Certified Penetration Testing Engineer, and Certified Penetration Testing Consultant. At the end of each course, students took a certification exam provided by Mile2. 

"Mile2 is extremely excited to have been chosen to spearhead the first veterans retraining program of this magnitude," exclaimed Raymond Friedman, CEO of Mile2. "As a cybersecurity officer, I know the challenges of learning new skills in an aggressively evolving technological space, and Mile2 wanted to do it right the first go-around with 100% success!" 

Cybersecurity professionals often deal with issues related to critical infrastructure and dangerous cyber attacks, which can be difficult to simulate outside of a specialized training environment. For seven weeks, students had access to the Michigan Cyber Range's Alphaville environment and Mile2's lab environment. Students were able to safely practice ethical hacking and penetration testing in secure environments that are separated from the Internet. Alphaville was also used for capture-the-flag exercises, where students search for hidden flags within the computer systems of a virtual town. The exercises helped reinforce skills learned during the coursework. 

The veterans spent the final week at WCCCD's Learning Resource Center, where they prepared to enter the workforce. The students received resume-writing advice and practiced interviewing, essential skills for job-seeking professionals. 

The program was a great success, and the participating organizations are planning to offer the cybersecurity retraining program again to military veterans.