University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
A U.S. Department of Homeland Security Center of Excellence
Critical Infrastructure Resilience Institute

Advancing Resiliency through Workforce Education and Real-World Testing

Research Team Leadership

  • PI: Danny Reible, Texas Tech University
  • Co-PI: Annette Sobel, Texas Tech University
  • Co-PI: Mark Harral, Angelo State University
  • Co-PI: Susan Williams, Angelo State University

Project Overview

A team composed of Texas Tech University (TTU), Angelo State University (ASU) and Group NIRE created a work force development program for CIRI. The project will be used to develop and train homeland security professionals for the current and future workforce. The program leveraged a combination of university programs at TTU and ASU, and a unique demonstration and testbed facility that provides both data and training for electric grid, microgrid, distributed generation assets, and real-time weather forecast. The program is designed to advance the skills of the national infrastructure and cybersecurity workforce, particularly in rural and small urban communities.

The program includes seminars and CEU modules that serve as training tools in critical infrastructure resilience for both TTU and ASU students and outside professionals. Seminars featured industry experts to illustrate examples of issues faced by critical infrastructure entities, including extreme weather, extreme mechanical failure, cybersecurity attacks, and post event analysis.