What Is a Security Operations Center? It’s a staple of cinema: a darkened room full of people bent over computers, their faces lit by screens displaying an array of impending dangers. A SOC is similar in energy: Analysts pore over potential threats, flag suspicious activity and escalate concerns to protect the company’s data. “The security operations center and the people within are where the initial steps and triage happen,” explains Alexandria Donathan, executive director of the Institute for Cyber Security. Regardless of industry — whether it’s healthcare, finance, real estate, education, manufacturing or a government agency — everything has systems, data and information to protect. A SOC analyst is the gatekeeper for these systems. “A good SOC analyst is not valuable just because they understand technology. They also have to be curious, patient and able to make good decisions. They need to ask the right questions, follow the evidence, write down what they find and know when something needs to be escalated,” explains Lanham. “When they do that well, they can help an organization catch problems early, respond faster and avoid a much larger incident.” DISCOVER: Quantifying risk can help justify cybersecurity investments. SOC Project Illustrates the Value of Industry Partnerships In 2025, Marshall University announced its partnership with Intuit — something that Donathan believes higher education needs more of. “Industry and academia work together to align education with real, operational workforce demands, and with that, students graduate with applied learning skills they’re ready to use on day one,” she says. This June, Intuit launched a SOC at Marshall University. The partnership covers the cost of two full-time employees who will be working out of a shared space on campus until the new Institute for Cyber Security building is finished in August 2027. Beyond securing the physical space, the institute