Kevin Powers: From Academic to Practical Cybersecurity

Kevin Powers, Faculty Director of the Masters of Legal Studies in Cybersecurity Risk and Governance at Boston College Law School, began his professional and academic journey when he volunteered for a task force exploring cybersecurity education at Boston College. Rather than developing a purely technical curriculum, he advocated for an interdisciplinary approach that would integrate law, business, and risk management. "Cybersecurity is not just a technical issue," Powers explained during the podcast episode. Working with stakeholders from the White House, FBI, major financial institutions, and technology companies, the team built a curriculum designed to produce well-rounded cybersecurity professionals.

The program launched in 2015 and recently transitioned to BC Law School, offering 10 courses taught entirely by practitioners actively working in the field. Students include FBI agents, financial compliance officers, and executives from Fortune 50 companies, with an average age of 33.

A central theme of Powers' program is bridging the communication divide between technical teams and business leadership. With recent SEC regulations and requirements like New York's DFS Part 500 mandating board-level cybersecurity oversight, organizations need professionals who understand both technical controls and business implications.

"Boards are recognizing cybersecurity as a core business function," Powers noted, emphasizing that every company operating on networks faces operational risk when systems go down. The program prepares students to communicate cyber risk in business terms and develop governance frameworks aligned with regulatory requirements like CMMC 2.0, FedRAMP, and the NIST Cybersecurity Framework.

The program has evolved rapidly to address artificial intelligence governance. Powers redesigned his coursework after discovering AI tools could complete assignments in minutes, shifting 70% of grading to oral presentations that emphasize critical thinking over output.

Looking ahead, Powers identified cloud security and data sovereignty as critical concerns. Many organizations mistakenly believe SaaS platforms automatically back up their data, leaving them vulnerable during incidents. The CDK Global attack on car dealerships illustrated how unprepared businesses can be when cloud services fail.

Beyond academics, Powers emphasizes creating networks. Graduates maintain connections with government agencies, financial institutions, and technology companies, facilitating collaboration across sectors. The program hosts the annual Boston Conference on Cybersecurity, which draws hundreds of attendees including CISOs from major sports franchises and law enforcement leaders.

For organizations navigating increasingly complex regulatory landscapes, Powers' message is clear: cybersecurity expertise must extend beyond technical skills to encompass governance, compliance, and strategic business alignment. As cyber threats evolve, professionals need frameworks like NIST to demonstrate reasonable security practices to regulators while protecting operational continuity.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-powers-54893a8/ 

Boston College School of Law: https://www.bc.edu/bc-web/schools/law.html 

Check out video versions of Kitecast episodes at https://www.kiteworks.com/kitecast or on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/c/KiteworksCGCP.