MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (WV News) — Trilogy Innovations, a systems and software engineering company based in West Virginia, is donating funds to establish a cybersecurity laboratory at West Virginia University’s Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources.
The gift will cover the naming, construction, equipment and an endowment for the lab. Trilogy co-founders Brandon Downey, CEO, and Randy Cottle, president, said the donation will fund the first cybersecurity lab at WVU’s engineering school with a focus on cybersecurity engineering. Renovations to accommodate the lab will begin soon.
The donation was made through the WVU Foundation, the nonprofit organization that handles private contributions to the university. Trilogy, headquartered in Bridgeport with offices in Morgantown, is an SBA Certified 8(a) small and minority-owned business.
The company plans to use the lab as part of a broader effort to build a statewide cybersecurity education network across higher education institutions and K-12 schools to increase interest in the field, expand educational programs, and strengthen the cybersecurity workforce.
“We want to create the next generation of professionals for the cybersecurity and artificial intelligence industries, and we want to start at West Virginia University,” Downey said.
“I recently spoke to an engineering class here at WVU and told students that there were 3.5 million unfilled cybersecurity jobs worldwide in 2024, and 500,000 of those jobs are in the U.S.," Downey said.
"We at Trilogy want to do everything we can to enlarge the talent pool at WVU and, eventually, across the state. Cybersecurity jobs are there, and the work is there if students want to pursue these careers.”
Pedro Mago, Glen H. Hiner Dean of the Statler College, said the contribution will provide new opportunities for students interested in cybersecurity careers.
“We are thrilled about the opportunities that Trilogy is providing our cybersecurity students with the establishment of this new cybersecurity lab,” Mago said. “We are incredibly grateful for the support from industry leaders and our loyal alumni. Their recognition of our students’ potential and talent, coupled with their generous contributions, enables us to offer state-of-the-art resources that prepare our students for in-demand, frontline cybersecurity positions.”
Downey and Cottle met while attending WVU in the 1990s and founded Trilogy in 2010. Cottle said the lab is one component of a larger vision for WVU’s cybersecurity engineering students.
“We want to create pipelines for Trilogy to NASA, the FBI, NOAA, DOE/NETL, and the Department of Homeland Security,” Cottle said. “All of these agencies have locations within 30 minutes of the WVU campus and they are agencies with whom Trilogy has valuable relationships. You take this new lab and add our relationships, and that results in opportunities.”
Trilogy’s broader cybersecurity initiative in West Virginia includes:
“We want to make investments that have purpose,” Downey said. “Given the rapid growth of the tech industry in West Virginia, which is currently the No. 3 industry in the state, this investment and commitment could certainly open up new opportunities to expand the number of tech companies or the number of workers in the tech sector. Committing to the K-12 and higher education systems paves the way for students to be involved in a growing industry.”
Cottle said information technology jobs currently make up 4.3% of West Virginia’s workforce, with salaries 92% higher than the state median wage.
“Helping to grow the IT/tech industry in West Virginia gives our college graduates options to stay and live in this state,” Cottle said. “Out-migration in the past has been substantial, but growing this industry can help change that for the better.”
Trilogy was named the fastest-growing IT services company in West Virginia by Inc. Magazine in 2022, 2023, and 2024, and the state’s fastest-growing company overall in 2022 and 2023. The company specializes in software integration, cybersecurity, data analytics, application modernization, cloud services, and biometrics.
The gift will cover the naming, construction, equipment and an endowment for the lab. Trilogy co-founders Brandon Downey, CEO, and Randy Cottle, president, said the donation will fund the first cybersecurity lab at WVU’s engineering school with a focus on cybersecurity engineering. Renovations to accommodate the lab will begin soon.
The donation was made through the WVU Foundation, the nonprofit organization that handles private contributions to the university. Trilogy, headquartered in Bridgeport with offices in Morgantown, is an SBA Certified 8(a) small and minority-owned business.
The company plans to use the lab as part of a broader effort to build a statewide cybersecurity education network across higher education institutions and K-12 schools to increase interest in the field, expand educational programs, and strengthen the cybersecurity workforce.
“We want to create the next generation of professionals for the cybersecurity and artificial intelligence industries, and we want to start at West Virginia University,” Downey said.
“I recently spoke to an engineering class here at WVU and told students that there were 3.5 million unfilled cybersecurity jobs worldwide in 2024, and 500,000 of those jobs are in the U.S.," Downey said.
"We at Trilogy want to do everything we can to enlarge the talent pool at WVU and, eventually, across the state. Cybersecurity jobs are there, and the work is there if students want to pursue these careers.”
Pedro Mago, Glen H. Hiner Dean of the Statler College, said the contribution will provide new opportunities for students interested in cybersecurity careers.
“We are thrilled about the opportunities that Trilogy is providing our cybersecurity students with the establishment of this new cybersecurity lab,” Mago said. “We are incredibly grateful for the support from industry leaders and our loyal alumni. Their recognition of our students’ potential and talent, coupled with their generous contributions, enables us to offer state-of-the-art resources that prepare our students for in-demand, frontline cybersecurity positions.”
Downey and Cottle met while attending WVU in the 1990s and founded Trilogy in 2010. Cottle said the lab is one component of a larger vision for WVU’s cybersecurity engineering students.
“We want to create pipelines for Trilogy to NASA, the FBI, NOAA, DOE/NETL, and the Department of Homeland Security,” Cottle said. “All of these agencies have locations within 30 minutes of the WVU campus and they are agencies with whom Trilogy has valuable relationships. You take this new lab and add our relationships, and that results in opportunities.”
Trilogy’s broader cybersecurity initiative in West Virginia includes:
- Increasing K-12 access to cybersecurity education,
- Connecting students statewide who are interested in cybersecurity,
- Expanding internships into year-round micro-internships, and
- Creating a network of cybersecurity labs at higher education institutions across the state.
“We want to make investments that have purpose,” Downey said. “Given the rapid growth of the tech industry in West Virginia, which is currently the No. 3 industry in the state, this investment and commitment could certainly open up new opportunities to expand the number of tech companies or the number of workers in the tech sector. Committing to the K-12 and higher education systems paves the way for students to be involved in a growing industry.”
Cottle said information technology jobs currently make up 4.3% of West Virginia’s workforce, with salaries 92% higher than the state median wage.
“Helping to grow the IT/tech industry in West Virginia gives our college graduates options to stay and live in this state,” Cottle said. “Out-migration in the past has been substantial, but growing this industry can help change that for the better.”
Trilogy was named the fastest-growing IT services company in West Virginia by Inc. Magazine in 2022, 2023, and 2024, and the state’s fastest-growing company overall in 2022 and 2023. The company specializes in software integration, cybersecurity, data analytics, application modernization, cloud services, and biometrics.
