Coastline College took second place, the University of West Florida third place and Iowa State University fourth. CAE-CD Community Outreach Award Competition is for those schools taking part in the National Centers of Academic Excellence (NCAE) in Cybersecurity Community. Awards go to a CAE-Cyber Defense (CD) designated institution.
From the University of West Florida (UWF), Dr. Eman El-Sheikh, associate vice president for the UWF Center for Cybersecurity and AI, also received an award for Outstanding Contributions to the CAE Cyber AI Community and Nation. These awards ended up unveiled at the 2026 CAE in Cybersecurity Symposium held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, April 28-30.
The CAE-CD Community Outreach Award showcases CAE-designated institutions that are going above and beyond and kind of requirements. Furthermore, the institutions end up recognized for their outstanding community outreach initiatives.
Outreach Activities
In one example, the UWF Center for Cybersecurity and AI received the CAE-CD Community Outreach Award for community outreach, including:
- Workforce development programs: The UWF Center for Cybersecurity and AI offered numerous workforce development programs, including free training for veterans, transitioning military, first responders and government personnel through the CyberSkills2Work Program and Florida Cybersecurity Training Program.
- GenCyber pathways to cyber summer camps: The UWF Center for Cybersecurity hosted two GenCyber camps and year-round activities for rising seventh- through 10th-graders. Additionally, the students received an introduction to the various aspects of cybersecurity work. They focused on the six GenCyber Concepts: confidentiality, integrity, availability, defense in depth, keep it simple and think like the adversary.
University of West Florida earned a third place finish in the 2025 CAE-CD Community Outreach Award Competition.Source: University of West Florida
- UWF Night of Cyber: The UWF Center for Cybersecurity and AI promoted cybersecurity awareness, careers, educational programs and resources. They did this through a Night of Cyber, showing cyber career opportunities for high school, college students and adult learners. Students hear from industry professionals and academic instructors about the opportunities and paths to achieve their dreams.
- Faculty development workshops: The UWF Center for Cybersecurity and AI hosted workshops for faculty from across the nation. This could help faculty integrate cutting edge topics and high impact learning practices into their programs. It could also prepare the future AI-enabled cybersecurity workforce.
- Other community engagement: UWF and Center personnel participated in numerous community events, conferences and media interviews. This way they could share their expertise and enhance cybersecurity awareness and education.
Future Workforce
“Cybersecurity and AI are transforming every sector of society, and preparing the future workforce requires innovation, collaboration and national leadership,” said Dr. Eman El-Sheikh, associate vice president for the UWF Center for Cybersecurity and AI.
Dr. El-Sheikh was one of five faculty members nationwide to receive an award for Outstanding Contributions to the CAE Cyber AI Community and Nation. Her contributions include helping develop the CAE Cyber AI program framework. That helped define the requirements for CAE institutions to develop AI-Cyber or Secure-AI programs of study. She also co-developed an AI and ML Fundamentals course that will be publicly available, serving on the CAE Cyber AI Community of Practice Steering Committee, and organized a Cyber AI session at the CAE in Cybersecurity Symposium.
Click here for more information on the UWF Center for Cybersecurity and AI.