Assistant Director, Ohio Persistent Cyber Improvement, Center for Cyber Strategy and Policy

About the Ohio Cyber Range Institute and Ohio Persistent Cyber Improvement Project

The Ohio Cyber Range Institute (OCRI), housed at the University of Cincinnati, is a partnership among state agencies and academic institutions led by UC, the Ohio Adjutant General and Cyber Ohio. OCRI’s mission is to advance cybersecurity education, workforce, and economic development. OCRI administers the Ohio Cyber Range as a state-wide tool that supports programming for K-20 courses and events; full-spectrum training opportunities, including incident response teams; industry workforce and economic development; cyber security research; as well as government agency support among other programs.

The Ohio Persistent Cyber Improvement project (O-PCI) is an OCRI-led project funded by the state of Ohio through a Department of Homeland Security Cyber and Infrastructure Security Agency State and Local Cyber Improvement Grant. O-PCI is a training and exercise platform and curriculum delivered across the state of Ohio for Local Governments to improve their cyber defenses and resiliency.

Job Overview

The Assistant Director will lead the O-PCI Education Team responsible for designing, developing, and maintaining curriculum and training materials for local government employees across Ohio. This position will drive the growth of O-PCI to an operational scale capable of supporting all local government entities statewide, ensuring high-quality, accessible cyber training. The Assistant Director will report to the Associate Director, Ohio Persistent Cyber Improvement.

Key Skills and Competencies

• Strong leadership and team management skills in an academic, government, or nonprofit environment.
• Ability to manage complex projects and meet deadlines across multiple stakeholders.
• Understanding of cybersecurity concepts, threats, and best practices, especially in public-sector or local government contexts.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to translate technical concepts for non-technical audiences.

Essential Functions

• Assist the O-PCI Education Team in the development, implementation and administration of goals to achieve strategic objectives.
• Serve as project manager for O-PCI Education Team deliverables, ensuring timelines, quality standards, and grant requirements are met.
• Support the management of a range of projects/tasks associated with O-PCI operations and/or local government relations that have significant impact within the O-PCI program.
• Supervise Education Team staff (exempt and non-exempt), including hiring, onboarding, workload management, performance evaluations, professional development, and disciplinary actions as needed
• Establish and manage processes to monitor cybersecurity training effectiveness, collect participant feedback, and identify opportunities for continuous improvement.
• Collaborate closely with O-PCI Administrative and Exercise Teams to coordinate curriculum content, training delivery, and statewide program implementation.
• May function for the Associate Director in his/her absence, as required.
• Perform related duties as assigned to support the goals and sustainability of the O-PCI program. This job description can be changed at any time.

Required Education

Bachelor's Degree in Information Technology or related field.

Required Experience

• Seven (7) years of relevant work experience and/or other specialized training can be used in lieu of education requirement.

Additional Qualifications Considered

• Bachelor's Degree in Public Administration, Business Administration, Information Technology, Cybersecurity, Education, or related field
• Master’s Degree
• Experience in local, state, or federal government work environments.
• Cybersecurity related or project management related industry recognized certificates
• Experience developing or managing training programs, curriculum, or instructional materials, particularly for adult learners