Senator Patrick Leahy and his wife Marcelle visited the campus of Norwich University and the Senator Patrick Leahy School of Cybersecurity and Advanced Computing on November 16, 2023. During their visit, Senator Leahy met with students and faculty members to learn about Norwich's interdisciplinary efforts toward meeting our nation's demand for cyber leaders in private industry, government, law enforcement, the military, health services, and academia.
Senator Leahy has supported cyber education at Norwich for over 25 years. His support helped birth the Norwich University Applied Research Institutes (NUARI) and land the University over $70M in cybersecurity-related research and development grants and contracts. In 2022, Norwich University named its cybersecurity school after Senator Leahy in recognition of his leadership and support.
During his visit, Senator Leahy heard from students and faculty members about the innovative programs and research being conducted and the school's commitment to preparing students for the challenges and opportunities of the cybersecurity workforce.
"We were honored to host Senator Leahy and Marcelle on campus today to review the progress made by our students and faculty at the Senator Patrick Leahy School of Cybersecurity and Advanced Computing. Senator Leahy's unwavering support to educate and inspire future cyber leaders has positioned Norwich to be a leader in cyber education and research, and we are truly honored to have him as a champion of our school." – Phil Susmann, President, NUARI.
In his final vote as Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Senator Leahy approved a bill that allocates funding for over 30 projects across Vermont, including two for Norwich University. He secured $16.4 million in Congressional Directed Spending for the Norwich University Multi-disciplinary Cyber Fusion Research and Development Center, which will foster educational and workforce training opportunities in cybersecurity, information operations, computing, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and real-time decision-making.
Norwich University has established itself as a pioneer in cybersecurity education. In 1999, the University introduced a Computer Security & Information Assurance degree, one of the first programs of its kind in the nation.