TAMPA, Fla. — Floridians soon will have many more opportunities to venture down the cybersecurity career path.
Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Wednesday the state has awarded $20 million to create new opportunities in the field of cybersecurity.
The funding will be coordinated through the Florida Center for Cybersecurity at the University of South Florida. They will then work with regional partners to expand programs that help middle school, high school and college students obtain credentials in cybersecurity, DeSantis said during the news conference.
"We can start preparing people with skills prior to being in college, so we've worked really hard on the K-12 system to get more cyber/IT computer science in the classroom," said the governor, adding that Florida has been able to get funding from the legislature to make this happen.
The funding will be used for training new teachers and purchasing training equipment for students.
Florida Department of Education Senior Chancellor Henry Mack says the $20 million will help accelerate career and technical education by "going right into the hands of teachers, school districts and state colleges to help expand pathways for students to train in these critical areas."
DeSantis explains how this program is the first of its kind.
"There's no other state that's using a regional model that will allow students as early as middle school to start earning credentials in IT and cybersecurity," he says.
So what does this mean for the Tampa Bay area? Surrounding Tampa Bay counties will be able to work with USF to expand opportunities at both a middle and high school level and then into college.
"Yes, it typically requires a four-year degree, but there's no reason why students in middle school and high school can't start obtaining these skills," DeSantis said. "You're finding a lot of demand for them, so we want to start as early as possible."
The regional model reportedly has two set spots — one at USF and another one at Florida International University down in Miami.
There is also a third region up for grabs, with DeSantis saying he's looking to see who is willing to be a part of the program.
But why was USF picked specifically? According to the governor, the Tampa-based university is well versed in the IT/cybersecurity world.
USF has been recognized as the leader in IT and in cyber, along with partnering with U.S. Special Operations Command headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base to help develop new technologies and programs that can improve national defense, DeSantis explains.
Since 2019, enrollment in cybersecurity and IT pathways has reportedly increased by 37 percent.
"With this funding, we believe we'll be able to double [the] enrollment to more than 300,000 students [in] middle school, high school and college level by 2024," the governor said. "So that's a really big deal."
This funding came during a time when there are 22,000 unfilled high-paying cybersecurity jobs in the state.
"We are proud of this $20 million, we think it's going to make a difference," DeSantis said. "You'll likely see a pretty immediate impact, but I think the bigger impact will be five to 10 years down the road as this becomes something that's more standardized and more students have access to it at earlier ages..."
The applications for the funding will be released Tuesday, March 8, on cyberflorida.org, Mack explains.
Watch the news conference below: