Expanding the CyberAmbassadors Program to Include Mentoring for Emerging CI Careers

Volume 17, Issue 1 (March 2026), pp. 11–18

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@article{jocse-17-1-2,
  author={Katy Luchini-Colbry and Dirk Colbry and Julie Rojewski},
  title={Expanding the CyberAmbassadors Program to Include Mentoring for Emerging CI Careers},
  journal={The Journal of Computational Science Education},
  year=2026,
  month=mar,
  volume=17,
  issue=1,
  pages={11--18},
  doi={https://doi.org/10.22369/issn.2153-4136/17/1/2}
}

Advanced computing infrastructure has fostered tremendous growth and innovation across research and practice in STEM. Cyberinfrastructure (CI) professionals often collaborate with disciplinary experts who want to leverage computation; in order to contribute effectively to this work CI professionals need both technical and professional skills. There are many formal and informal opportunities for the CI workforce to gain technical skills, and the CyberAmbassadors program developed new curriculum to provide CI professionals with opportunities to build their professional skills. More than 19,000 participant trainings have been completed, including almost 900 individuals who have earned a certificate for completing the entire CyberAmbassadors program. This paper describes initial efforts to expand CyberAmbassadors to include training on culturally-aware mentoring skills, with a focus on fostering professional success in the CI workforce, which is still an evolving profession with no single entry path. The new mentoring curriculum will help CI professionals at all levels develop the self-assessment, planning, and networking skills necessary to build strong mentoring relationships that can help them navigate emerging CI career paths. The mentoring curriculum will build on the communications, teamwork and leadership skills training from the existing CyberAmbassadors program, and will offer specialized practice in key career development activities like offering constructive feedback, fostering a growth mindset, developing a mentoring network, and building transferable skills. The new curriculum will also integrate research about the benefits of culturally-aware mentoring, which seeks to provide broad support for mentees with diverse identities and experiences. Once finalized, the new curriculum will be distributed broadly through a national network of volunteer facilitators who provide trainings for their own campuses, companies and communities.