When David Mayne first started looking for a job in cybersecurity, the recruiter at his first-choice company told him no.
Mayne had already overcome tremendous hardship, losing his eye and his leg following a severe car accident, then finding a way to raise his four children on his own.
Mayne landed at Novacoast, a cybersecurity company specializing in IT services and software development.
After the company moved from Santa Barbara, Calif., to Wichita, Kansas, Mayne reached out to state and city organizations to recruit for Novacoast's training program.
That's how he met the team at Envision, a local organization that helps people who are blind or visually impaired through employment, outreach, rehabilitation, education, and research.
Curriculum Adapts to the Tools With the right tools - such as a computer with a screen reader and a Braille keyboard - BVI individuals can work in cybersecurity and IT roles, such as a SOC analyst, help-desk engineer, or network administration, Mayne realized.
So with the support of Novacoast CEO Paul Anderson, Mayne led the development of the Apex Program, an online, on-demand course to prepare VBI students for cybersecurity certification exams.
About 25 students have enrolled in the program since its inception in May 2023, and Mayne says he hopes to register 100 this year.
The program is free, its $7,500 cost covered by state grants.
16 states have partnered with the Apex Program, with Florida and Texas expected to join the fold this year, Mayne says.
The training materials are delivered in several different ways to accommodate student needs: audio-only, text-only, and PowerPoint and Word document versions that auto advance or advance manually.
Creating a curriculum that was accessible and still tackled the challenging topics completely was challenging, Mayne says.
Mayne is currently updating the materials, as the exams will be updated in July.
Training Pays Off for Students and Employers So far, four students have completed the Apex Program course.
One of the first graduates, Curtis Johnson, recently joined Novacoast as a SOC 1 Analyst, the company's first direct hire from the program.
Finding the Apex Program through a Facebook ad was a game-changer for Johnson, who was born blind due to congenital glaucoma.
For Mayne, bringing Johnson on board was important for both the company and the success of the Apex Program.
About 70 organizations have said they are willing to interview the program's graduates.
Cybersecurity Is a Career, Not Just a Job Mayne has been working with the White House's Office of the National Cyber Director to spread the word about the program, which also was featured in a recent short film from WorkingNation, a nonprofit media organization that explores the future of work in the US. WorkingNation's Melissa Panzer, the short film's director, says that she hopes the film inspires business leaders to look to unlikely talent pools and expand who they consider for opportunities.
The Apex Program plans to expand beyond its focus on BVI individuals to veterans and disabled veterans, which could open the program up to 500 to 800 students a year, Mayne says.
This Cyber News was published on www.darkreading.com. Publication date: Tue, 09 Apr 2024 14:40:07 +0000