Auburn Redesignated as NSA Center for Academic Excellence

Drew Hamilton
   Drew Hamilton

The National Security Agency has once again designated Auburn University as a Center of Academic Excellence (CAE) as a result of its outstanding programs in information security and assurance. The designation from NSA allows Auburn to apply for scholarships and grants from federal information assurance scholarship programs.  Drew Hamilton, faculty member in the Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering, is principal investigator for Auburn's CAE.

"We are honored to receive this prestigious designation once again," said Larry Benefield, dean of the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering. "It takes the cooperation of many different departments and individuals to receive this type of recognition, and we appreciate the hard work that has gone into preparing for the evaluation process."

The CAE program was designed to help create a core group of professionals with expertise across various disciplines. The program focuses on the development of the information assurance workforce of the future, and on sustaining new research in information assurance areas.

DoD group photoMany federal grants are available only to NSA Centers of Excellence. Additionally, Auburn is eligible to apply for scholarships and grants through information assurance scholarship programs offered by the National Science Foundation and the Department of Defense.

Auburn was originally awarded the CAE designation in 2003. Universities are reevaluated every three years to make sure they are still in compliance with the high standards set forth by the NSA.

Learn more about Hamilton.