I need help designing first website

Let me start by saying, that I did try to post on the correct StackExchange site.

*Background: I am an undergrad college student, and am majoring in an IT related field. I am looking to build a website - nothing fancy. Topics will likely include both personal and IT related/InfoSec related content as that is what I want to major in.

*Purpose of the site: Deliverable - may help me in job search when I am fresh out of college if it is well designed.

*Features: PayPal donation button (I know I need the API), SSL maybe, Firewall if not provided by hosting provider, and Private WHOIS.

Question(s):

1.) Who to use for Hosting. WordPress was recommended by someone. I looked into GoDaddy and for a bare bones site after the first year ($1/month, minimal features), it goes to about $12/month.

2.) Platform to use for development (avoiding Yahoo).

3.) Hosting Provider (balancing security and cost). Do I need something like Securi?

4.) Is WordPress really decently secure? I keep reading about multiple new frequent vulnerabilities.

5.) Do I need an SSL certificate? If so, where is a legitimate place to get one for cheap?

6.) Funding ideas for the site (I am a college student with not a lot of discretionary income.)

What I have researched: I considered affiliate networks, maybe a PayPal button on the site, or worst case Ads. Any ideas for initial funding? Based on the limited experience in a college course learning limited HTML " that I took 4 years ago, I am pretty sure I should use Microsoft FrontPage or some type of Website Designer.

Any/all suggestions would be greatly appreciated!