NSA, N.C. A&T Partnering for a Diverse Workforce

EAST GREENSBORO, N.C. (Jan. 23, 2019) -- As a Historically Black College and University (HBCU) with a focus in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM), North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (N.C. A&T) has partnered with the National Security Agency (NSA) for over 20 years.

“N.C. A&T contributes to the diversity of our workforce and provides degree programs that are comprehensive, multidisciplinary and relevant to our mission,” said George C. Barnes, deputy director of NSA.

To celebrate its partnership, NSA has named N.C. A&T a Featured School. The Featured School Series highlights colleges and universities that help develop the talent and tools needed to meet national security challenges. The collaboration between NSA and N.C. A&T is being highlighted on NSA.gov, IntelligenceCareers.gov and on social media.

“We are so excited to be chosen as a Featured School. Partnerships such as this demonstrate our commitment to improving lives through innovations in research and discovery,” said Beryl McEwen, N.C. A&T provost and executive vice chancellor for Academic Affairs. “N.C. A&T’s longstanding commitment to computer science and to cybersecurity has made significant career opportunities available for so many exceptional students and helped to advance the frontiers of this important discipline.”

N.C. A&T has been a National Center of Excellence (CAE) for eight years, promoting higher education and research in the critical area of cyber defense. The school is also one of 16 colleges and universities across the country in NSA’s hiring and recruitment Campus Ambassador Program (CAP), which serves to build and strengthen relationships with select universities. Further, N.C. A&T hosted two GenCyber Camps in 2018 sponsored by NSA and the National Science Foundation, providing free summer cybersecurity experiences for students and teachers at the K-12 level.

Currently, NSA hires more N.C. A&T grads than any other agency in the Intelligence Community, and nearly 70 N.C. A&T alumni work at the Agency.

“Academic partnerships are so vital to national security that NSA invests more than $100 million annually in support of academic partner programs, including educational grants, research and recruitment efforts,” Barnes said.

NSA aims to introduce a new featured school every few months, highlighting schools designated as Centers of Academic Excellence that have a depth and breadth of engagement with NSA. The series will also have a presence on IntelligenceCareers.gov and will be featured on social media.