Polis orders Colorado agencies to design statewide cybersecurity pathway

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis directed six state agencies to design a statewide pathway connecting high school cybersecurity coursework with college credit, credentials, jobs, apprenticeships and service. The agencies have 60 days to produce a framework that assesses educator capacity and regional access, including barriers facing rural schools. Executive Order D 2026 022, issued Oct. 20, sets the planning work in motion.

The lead agencies are the Colorado departments of Labor and Employment, Higher Education, Military and Veterans Affairs, and Public Safety; the Office of Economic Development and International Trade; and the Governor’s Office of Information Technology. They are to work with the Governor’s and Lieutenant Governor’s offices, the Colorado Department of Education and the Colorado Community College System. The education department and college system are to be consulted to the extent they choose to participate.

The framework must map validated routes from high school through postsecondary education, credentials and employment or service. It must assess funding, instructional and educator capacity, hands-on technology and regional needs, with particular attention to rural institutions. It must also outline phased implementation, agency responsibilities and interoperable records of verified learning and credentials.

The order identifies existing options—including career and technical education, Advanced Placement Cybersecurity, concurrent enrollment, industry certifications and work-based learning—as building blocks. It directs the labor department to develop pathways across work-based learning, including youth and registered apprenticeships. The higher-education department and college system are to work on credit recognition and transfer agreements. The economic-development office is to seek industry commitments for opportunities such as internships, apprenticeships, mentoring and projects.

Other directives include public-sector internships and work-based learning through the information-technology office, and internships, mentoring and practical training with the public-safety department’s cybersecurity and intelligence professionals. The military and veterans department is to develop a framework for treating a qualifying Advanced Placement Cybersecurity score as a positive readiness indicator in National Guard outreach and career counseling. The order says that would not replace federal enlistment requirements or guarantee enlistment or a particular job.

The order describes qualified educators as a constraint on expanding cybersecurity coursework and says rural and historically underserved students are less likely to have access to advanced classes. The framework must assess educator and instructional capacity and consider professional learning, student support and shared training infrastructure, including cyber ranges, to improve rural access.

The Colorado Department of Education is strongly encouraged—not required—to support interested local education providers with guidance and technical assistance and to explore ways to expand educator availability within its existing authority. The order identifies cybersecurity professionals, veterans, military spouses, transitioning service members and mid-career professionals as potential sources of classroom expertise. The higher-education department is directed to give particular attention to rural districts and Boards of Cooperative Educational Services when considering ways to streamline career and technical education approvals.

The order sets a framework deadline but does not appropriate funding, set participation targets or establish a further implementation deadline.