Kimberly Espy, Col. Gregory J. Gagnon and Bernard Arulanandam at a presentation this week recognizing UTSA as an NSA featured school.

(March 20, 2019) – UTSA has partnered with the National Security Agency (NSA) for more than 16 years to create the talent and tools needed to address the nation’s toughest cybersecurity challenges. To celebrate this partnership, the NSA has named UTSA a featured school.

The selection is attributed to a long-standing relationship between UTSA and the NSA, dating back to the early 2000s, and in the past year, an increased research presence with the formation of the National Security Collaboration Center. Colonel Gregory J. Gagnon, director of the Commander’s Action Group/Headquartered Air Force Space Command, visited UTSA earlier this week for a presentation with Provost Kimberly Espy and the university's senior leadership team.

“UTSA is unique in that it is only one of 10 colleges and universities that holds the distinction of being designated as a Center of Academic Excellence (CAE) in all of three NSA focus areas – Cyber Operations, Cyber Defense and Research,” said George C. Barnes, NSA deputy director. CAEs promote higher education and research in cybersecurity and produce professionals with the expertise to reduce vulnerabilities in our national information infrastructure.

“We are proud to be named a featured school,” said Bernard Arulanandam, UTSA interim vice president for research, economic development, and knowledge enterprise. “By bringing NSA researchers and scholars to work on campus, our students have benefited in so many ways. With nearly a dozen research projects to choose from, students are learning new ways in which to think, design and create to tackle real world challenges, in particular as it relates to cyber and national security.”

NSA has established a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the University of Texas (UT) System, which enables easy collaboration between NSA and any of the 14 schools in the UT System. Currently, UTSA is working on a number of projects or “joint work statements” with NSA under the CRADA, addressing challenges in areas such as augmented reality and high-speed computing.

>> Learn how UTSA is building a national security powerhouse.

As a Hispanic Serving Institution, UTSA also contributes to the diversity of NSA. The university is one of 16 hiring and recruitment Campus Ambassador Program (CAP) schools across the country, and UTSA alumni working at NSA have degrees in computer science, electrical engineering, mathematics, information technology and other disciplines. Over 50 UTSA graduates are currently employed at NSA, with the top graduating majors being computer science followed by electrical and computer engineering.

Andrew Hutton, a software engineer at NSA, started working at the Agency as an intern while at UTSA, a school he said he chose for its cybersecurity program.

“I showed up and was working on code and pushing it to production right away,” he said of his internship. “One of the things that attracted me to the Agency is that the work we do here really matters.”

NSA also has a specialized articulation agreement with UTSA that allows military and NSA civilian employees unique pathways to obtain college degrees to further their careers and contributions to the mission.

“As the Agency works to enhance our partnerships with academic institutions, such as UTSA -- by appointing visiting professors, engaging academic liaisons, establishing articulation agreements, and implementing CRADAs -- we create amazing, unique opportunities for students to contribute to the field of cybersecurity and ultimately to our mission,” said Kathy Hutson, NSA senior strategist for Academic Engagement. “That’s truly a win-win.”

NSA aims to introduce a new featured school every few months, highlighting schools designated as CAEs that have a depth and breadth of engagement with NSA. To date, the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) and North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (NC A&T) have been featured.

The collaboration will be highlighted on NSA.gov, IntelligenceCareers.gov and related social media channels.