Updated: Oct. 20, 2015 at 10:50 a.m.

GW announced a five year-long partnership with a government-contracted information technology company, Telos, Monday.

GW will “establish a data analytics research center” at its Virginia Science and Technology Campus according to a University release. GW, led by Ali Eskandarian, the dean of VSTC, will hire researchers to develop and test cyber and physical security threats.

Telos, led by Richard Robinson, the chief technology officer of Telos, will conduct “various projects focusing on algorithm development for contextual and predictive analytics” to support the project.

“The partnership with Telos demonstrates how academia and a leading industry corporation can come together to address issues that affect so many in our society,” Eskandarian said in the release. “In Telos, one of our VSTC neighbors and one of the premier companies in the commonwealth of Virginia, we are fortunate to have a partner with equal commitment to advance the economic development of the region.”

John Wood, the CEO of Telos, is a member of the advisory board for VSTC. He said the partnership between GW and Telos will bring together resources that will improve research on cyber security.

“In this same light, our partnership with VSTC will lead to real-world solutions addressing the most complex and critical concern of our time—how to assess risk and maintain security in a world of ever-changing threats — and will help further establish Northern Virginia’s leadership role in cybersecurity,” Wood said in the release.

In May 2014, the University, along with three tech firms, published a report that predicted a big data boom in the region would bring 20,500 jobs to the D.C. area over the next three years.

GW is also home to the Cyber Security and Policy Research Institute, which hosts groups of elite students to study cyber security and other related topics.

Over the last several years, the United States Department of Defense has hired Telos to modernize its wireless networks. In 2008, Telos won a multimillion-dollar contract with the United States Army to create the Combat Service Automated Information System Interface, which allows soldiers on the front lines and in command centers to communicate.

Telos also operates a messaging application developed for the Department of Defense.

This post was updated to reflect the following correction:
Due to an editing error, The Hatchet incorrectly reported the name of the CEO of Telos. His name is John Wood, not James Wood. We regret this error.