Leader: Dr. Michelle Angelo-Rocha

Cyber Research Analyst, Cyber Florida | Adjunct Professor, University of South Florida

Dr. Michelle Angelo-Rocha is a community-based qualitative researcher and workforce strategist specializing in cybersecurity workforce development and multilingual education. She leads the CyberBay Workforce Development Initiative, a regional, cross-sector effort focused on aligning education systems with entry-level cybersecurity workforce demands, and serves as lead researcher and report author for the CyberBay Workforce Working Group.

Her work advances employer-aligned training models that emphasize hands-on experience, portfolio-based skill validation, and measurable workforce readiness. She is the author of It Takes More Than a Certificate: A Holistic Model for Cybersecurity Workforce Education and co-author of The Search for the Cyber Unicorn. Her research focuses on talent pipeline performance, skills alignment, and the limitations of traditional credentialing pathways. She serves on the 2026 National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) Conference Committee and holds a PhD in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of South Florida.

Mission

The CyberBay Workforce Development Working Group convenes employers, educators, HR leaders, early-career professionals, recruiters, workforce specialists, and government partners to examine cybersecurity workforce challenges and advance practical, hands-on strategies that strengthen the regional talent pipeline.

Working Group Process

The CyberBay Workforce Development Working Group was convened as a structured, multi-session focus group to examine workforce gaps and identify alignment strategies across education, industry, and workforce systems.

Seventeen participants were strategically selected to ensure cross-sector representation, including employers from private and government sectors, HR leaders and recruiters, cybersecurity practitioners, higher education faculty and program leaders, K–12 representatives, workforce and economic development partners, and entry-level professionals. This composition is a core strength of the initiative, enabling direct alignment between hiring expectations, educational design, and workforce entry pathways.

Over four months (December 2025 to March 2026), participants engaged in facilitated sessions progressing from analyzing labor market dynamics and defining workforce challenges to examining curriculum, experiential learning, and system-level constraints. The process culminated in validated findings and actionable recommendations to inform best practices and policy considerations in Florida.

Deliverables

The Workforce Development working group aims to bridge the gap between regional cybersecurity talent and employer needs. Here is a summary of their primary deliverable:

The Phase I Deliverable (March 2026)

The primary output was a Comprehensive Report and Executive Presentation delivered at the March CyberBay event, presenting key findings and regional workforce recommendations.

Core Components

• The “Gap” Diagnosis: A determination of whether the shortage is a volume issue (not enough people) or a quality issue (lack of practical, nuanced experience).

• Requirement Mapping: Insight on the specific skills, experience, portfolios and even extracurricular interests that employers actually value versus what the current ecosystem provides.
• Validated Findings and System-Level Insights: Evidence-based findings derived from cross-sector input identifying key challenges across education, hiring practices, and policy structures, including misalignment between training and employer expectations, limited access to applied learning, and structural barriers to workforce entry.
• Development of a Regional Workforce Alignment Action Plan: The Working Group developed an action plan with system-level recommendations to strengthen cybersecurity workforce pathways, prioritizing experiential learning, employer engagement, and institutional alignment. Findings were presented at the 2026 CyberBay Summit, where stakeholder feedback refined Phase II priorities and ensured alignment with regional workforce needs.

Looking Ahead (Phase II)

This report serves as the data foundation for the group’s ongoing mandate. Post-March, the group will shift from research to action, formulating specific initiatives for the CyberBay community to implement to effectively close the regional skills gap. Updates on progress during Phase II will be communicated to the CyberBay community as they occur.

Members of the Workforce Development Working Group

April M. Augustine, Idaho National Laboratory, Director, National Security Workforce Development Programs

Rich Beynon, CareerSource Tampa Bay, Vice-President of Technology

Dr. Addye Buckley-Burnell, University of South Florida, Associate Vice President & Executive Director, Center for Career & Professional Development

Dr. Sriram Chellappan, University of South Florida, Professor, Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, and Computing

Dr. Alex A. Djahankhah Maj. USMCR, Florida SouthWestern State College Professor

Sanae Elmachhour, University of South Florida, Undergraduate Cybersecurity Program, CyberHerd & Cyber Florida SOCAP Member

Alex Espinosa, U.S. Department of Defense, Network Operations Manager

Drew Fearson, TENEX.ai, President of Talent

Eric Foster, TENEX.ai, Chief Executive Officer

Adam Hall, ReliaQuest, Cybersecurity Lead

Jessica Cassidy, TENEX.ai, Head of Talent, Cyber Workforce Specialist

Dr. Huzefa Kagdi, Florida Gulf Coast University, Dean of Engineering

Dr. Natalie Foster Johnson, CyberMINDS Research Institute, Executive Director, Information Security Administrator, Major U.S. Airport Operator

Matt Schwope, Senior Federal Resource Manager & Intelligence Community, Cybersecurity Recruiter & Mentor

Dr. Sasha Vanterpool, Skillrex, Senior Cyber Workforce Consultant

Camille Watson, Saint Leo University, Graduate Student, MSc Cybersecurity

Dr. James Welsh, University of South Florida, Director, USF Youth Experiences / FCIT