(NIST: Gaithersburg, MD) -- The U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has announced more than $3.3 million in cooperative agreements intended to develop the workforce needed to protect our nation’s infrastructure and organizations from cybersecurity threats. The 17 awards of about $200,000 each will go to educational and community organizations in 13 states to address the nation’s ongoing shortage of qualified cybersecurity professionals.

The agreements will be administered by NICE, a NIST-led collaboration among government, academia, and the private sector. NICE focuses on cybersecurity education and training and on the development of a skilled workforce.

The selected organizations will lead Regional Alliances and Multistakeholder Partnerships to Stimulate (RAMPS) cybersecurity workforce and education initiatives. RAMPS projects aim to match the workforce needs of local businesses and nonprofits with the guidance provided by the NICE Workforce Framework for Cybersecurity.

“RAMPS communities are intended to address the cybersecurity workforce needs of employers in local and regional economies,” says Rodney Petersen, director of NICE. “By bringing together local industry, educational organizations, and economic development entities, communities can develop a skilled workforce, help grow their economy, and protect against risks in cyberspace.”

The NICE-funded CyberSeek tool, which analyzes data about the cybersecurity job market, finds that there are currently more than 514,000 cybersecurity job openings in the U.S. Roughly 74 workers are available to fill every 100 cybersecurity job openings in the country.

Many RAMPS projects will focus on developing curricula or providing education and training at the high school, college, and professional levels. Other initiatives will offer practical learning opportunities such as internships, apprenticeships, or hands-on projects. Additional efforts include hosting workshops, boot camps, competitions, and hackathons.

With these newly awarded cooperative agreements, there will now be 47 RAMPS communities established across 25 states. A full list of 2025 recipients, the regions they serve, and the amounts awarded follows.

AZ Cyber Initiative: Arizona; $199,100

Bristol Community College: Southern Massachusetts; $177,776

The Coding School: Delaware-Maryland-Virginia; $200,000

Cyber Bytes Foundation: Stafford County, Virginia, region; $200,000

The Escal Institute of Advanced Technologies Inc.: Southeastern United States; $199,577

The Florida International University Board of Trustees: South Florida; $200,000

Industry Workforce Solutions Inc.: Northwest Indiana; $200,000

IUP Research Institute: Pennsylvania; $199,999.20

Neptune SHIELD: Southeastern Virginia; $200,000

San Bernardino Community College District: California Inland Empire/Desert region; $200,000

St. Bernard Parish Government—Workforce Programs (Triparish): Louisiana; $198,581.38

The Trustees of the Stevens Institute of Technology: New Jersey/New York metropolitan region; $200,000

The University of South Florida Board of Trustees: South Florida; $200,000

University City Science Center: Philadelphia; $200,000

University of Maine at Augusta: Augusta region; $200,000

University of Southern Mississippi: Mississippi Gulf Coast region; $153,048

Whatcom Community College: Northwest Washington State; $200,000