NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (March 16, 2006) The University of New Orleans has been selected as a National Center of Academic Excellence (CAE) in Information Assurance Education by the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The University of New Orleans is one of only 12 universities certified in the United States during this year's competition.

The Department of Computer Science at the University of New Orleans coordinated the application to the National Security Agency. The first milestone was achieved in 2003 when the curriculum of the Deparment of Computer Science was certified by the Information Assurance Courseware Evaluation Program of the NSA. The curriculum standards are set by the Committee on National Security Systems (CNSS) and outline a number of important topics that must be covered in detail. The University of New Orleans is the only university in Louisiana that holds this curriculum certification is now the only CAE in Louisiana.

The goal of the CAE program, implemented in the late 1990s, is to reduce the vulnerability of the U.S. national information infrastructure by promoting higher education in Information Assurance (IA) and producing a growing number of professionals with experience in the field. Other universities in the select group include Stanford University, Purdue University, Carnegie Mellon University, the Georgia Institute of Technology and the U. S. Military Academy at West Point.

Golden G. Richard III, an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science at UNO who teaches digital forensics and information security courses, led the department's efforts in obtaining both the curriculum certification and the CAE designation. "This is a very significant honor for the University of New Orleans," said Dr. Richard. "Probably the most important benefit is the availability of additional funding opportunities for the University. Students attending CAE institutions are eligible for a number of scholarships and this will really help us recruit and provide funding for highly-qualified students."

Colleges and universities designated as National Centers of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance Education have to pass a rigorous review, demonstrating that their faculty are active in both teaching and performing research in areas of information assurance, that they have state-of-the-art IA resources, and that there is a commitment to treating IA as a multi-disciplinary science. There are currently 67 Centers of Academic Excellence nationwide.

Designation as a Center for Academic Excellence is valid for three academic years. The official award ceremonies will take place on June 5, 2006, during the annual Colloquium for Information Systems Security Education at the University of Maryland University College Inn and Conference Center, Adelphi, MD. Dr. Richard will attend the ceremony and accept the award on behalf of the University of New Orleans.