Google Cybersecurity Clinics Fund

Google Cybersecurity Clinics Fund 

Google Cybersecurity Clinics Fund Preliminary Summary:

Opportunity:

The Fund will provide up to $1m in funding across 6 years to a total of

10 institutions. Google will also provide free-of-charge certifications and

expertise/resources.

Fund Goals:

The goals of the fund are for institutions to design and launch new

cybersecurity clinic programs.

The clinic would have two main functions

· Educate new students to prevent cyber-attacks on public

infrastructure

Assist public infrastructure, non-profits, and small businesses

on digital security assistance and best practices

In addition, the fund’s goal is to bring more members on to the Consortium of

cybersecurity clinics for the purpose of sharing knowledge and participating in

activities in the network.

The 10 institutions will be in a single cohort to achieve the following specific goals:

·       Train 4,200 students on preventing cyber-attacks on public infrastructure

·       Provide assistance and training to a total of 600 organizations

(Note that this number is across all of the institutions, so assuming each institution

equally contributes; we would have to train 420 students over the 6-year period

(70 students per year) and assist with 60 organizations, again, over the 6-year period

(10 per year))

Selection Criteria:

Google and the Tides foundation are looking for clinics who can help realize the

above goal and are able to perform the following:

·       Design a cyber security clinic which supports students in learning through

the guidance of faculty, instructors, and other field-experts. The class model works

well but other models are allowed as long as they meet the criteria.

·       Plans that demonstrate thoughtfulness and foresight and plans with a focus

on sustainability and growth.

·       Plans with a strong team and leadership to navigate the launch of the clinic.

·       The fund is also looking for a final set of clinics to ensure there is a diversity

of populations, geographies, and client organizations.

Application requirements:

The grant is intended to be used for faculty and instructor support, researchers,

student support, equipment and travel and other clinic related expenses.

The timeline for the application is as follows:

·       October 18, 2023: Application Open.

·       March 1, 2024: Proposal Submission Deadline (3:00PM Pacific Time).

·       March – April 2024: Review, follow-up if needed, and finalist selection.

The application requires:

1.      Proposal point of Contact: The person responsible for any follow-up and

next steps

2.      Information about the institution

a.      Whether the university has any special designations for minorities or otherwise

3.      Clinic model

a.      Would it be a class, student organization, other…

b.      Student population served.

c.       Planned sectors to serve (of the 16 sectors identified by CISA) and

why we choose to serve such sectors.

d.      How we will integrate equity and diversity into the clinic’s design

and implementation.

e.      General vision

4.      Clinic implementation

a.      Growth expectations in terms of number of students trained and

the number of institutions supported.

b.      Plans for effective growth and measuring such effectiveness.

c.       Plans for the management and staffing (Specifically, a initiative

lead, 1-2 cybersecurity experts/instructors to help design programming,

optional 1-2 other key members)

d.      Any interest from students, faculty, and/or administrators

e.      Risks and challenges and mitigation strategies

5.      Clinic long-term growth (Beyond the 6-year grant)

a.      Connections in the community

b.      Plans for continuance beyond the grant (general plans and

opportunities for additional funding and support)

c.       Any additional resources and support from the Consortium of

Cybersecurity Clinics

6.      Clinic budget

a.      Specific $ amounts for different items and costs.

b.      Any considerations considered in allocating the funds.

Charlie’s Summary of key points:

The focus of the fund seems to be to strengthen critical public infrastructure

(as defined by CISA here:

https://www.cisa.gov/topics/critical-infrastructure-security-and-resilience/critical-infrastructure-sectors) through the indirect training of students to support these organizations

and through direct “pro bono” support and training for organizations. In addition,

there seems to be an emphasis on equity and diversity in both the students

being trained and the organizations being assisted. They want a culture of inclusion

at the clinic and objectives surrounding diversity. It seems that they are looking for

clinics that not only are planning for the short-term, but clinics which have the

vision for the long-term (especially beyond the 6-year grant period). They want a

clinic with a mostly pre-established passionate team and a leader who will serve

as the “champion” and be the responsible party for the clinic in addition to the

experts and instructors who can assist with the development of programming.