Sandhills Community College receives $192k cybersecurity grant

By Staff Report, posted Oct 22, 2025 on BizFayetteville.com

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Sandhills Community College has been named a recipient of the State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Program (SLCGP) and has been awarded $192,325 to significantly strengthen its cybersecurity posture and support the development of sustainable governance practices across its IT infrastructure.

“Through this grant we will be able to support a full-time security analyst position whose role will be instrumental in implementing proactive threat detection and response strategies,” said Jonathan McLeod, CIO for the college, in a press release. “We will also be able to engage professional services to formalize IT policies and procedures aligned with national standards such as NIST, CIS and FERPA.”

The SLCGP is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), specifically administered through two of its agencies: Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). These agencies jointly manage the program to help state, local, tribal and territorial governments strengthen their cybersecurity capabilities and reduce systemic cyber risks.

The college is committed to maintaining the Security Analyst role beyond the grant period, starting in 2028 and continuing to refine its cybersecurity framework. This investment will help reduce incidents, improve audit readiness and ensure compliance with evolving standards.

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