A $5 million federal grant was awarded to the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley to establish a center that will encourage careers in the field of cyber research.

Sen. John Cornyn announced the grant in a Wednesday news release, adding that the funds will be used to establish a Center for Multidisciplinary Research Excellence in Cyber-Physical Infrastructure Systems (CIS) to address current gaps in the planning, design, and operation of CIS.

The funding comes through the National Science Foundation, the release stated.