Vance-Granville Community College is partnering with Piedmont Community College to create the next generation of cybersecurity professionals.

The two colleges have established a Level-Two Instructional Service Agreement (ISA) for cybersecurity that will begin next month, according to information from VGCC Public Information Officer Courtney Cissel.

This comprehensive collaboration paves the way for both institutions to share resources, faculty expertise, instructional support and to develop work-ready talent in the cybersecurity sector.

As part of the agreement, PCC Cybersecurity Instructor Dr. Syed Raza will provide on-campus instruction at VGCC. He formerly was chair of the Computer Science Graduate Program at Talladega College. Raza holds a Doctorate in Computer Information Systems with an Information Assurance concentration, a master’s of Science in computer science from Nova Southeastern University and a master’s in business administration (MBA) from Strayer University. Raza is also a member of various Cybersecurity and Information Technology (IT) organizations.

“We are proud to partner with Piedmont Community College to provide excellent learning opportunities in information technology for PCC and VGCC students,” said VGCC President Dr. Rachel Desmarais. “We can serve our communities better by pooling our resources, cooperating rather than competing.”

Piedmont CC contacted VGCC officials to gauge interest in working together and sharing resources to focus on cybercrime and cyber investigation. With this collaboration, VGCC will join a network of educational institutions working together to meet the growing talent needs of North Carolina’s public agencies and private businesses.

PCC President Dr. Pamela Senegal said, “This agreement reflects our commitment to ensuring students are ready to lead the way in cybersecurity. By aligning with VGCC, we aim to create an educational ecosystem that transcends boundaries and prepares students for success in an increasingly interconnected world.”

Online and hybrid classes offered will include:

• SEC 110 Security Concepts (3 Credits)
• CCT 110 Intro to Cyber Crime (3 Credits)
• CCT 121 Computer Crime Investigation (4 Credits)
• CTI 120 Network & Security Foundations (3 Credits)

A Level-Two ISA is defined as two or more colleges which plan to jointly offer curriculum or continuing education courses by sharing resources. One or more participating colleges must be approved to provide curriculum courses in an approved program of study or the continuing education courses the State Board has approved.

Visit www.piedmontcc.edu/cyber for more information.