DOVER, Del.-Delaware Governor John Carney and the Chief Information Officer (CIO) Gregory Lane on Monday announced that high school and college students can register for the CyberStart America and Cyber FastTrack programs. These national programs, sponsored by the National Cyber Scholarship Foundation and the SANS Institute, provide participants with the opportunity to explore their potential cybersecurity talent and assist Delaware students with gaining problem-solving skills that enhance knowledge post-graduation. The programs are split by high school student levels grades nine through twelve and college student level, and any participant has the chance to win scholarship prizes as well as statewide recognition.
“All Delawareans need to understand the potential of cybersecurity both for their professional and personal development. Whether cybersecurity is a potential career pathway or learning about self-protection against cyber criminals, it’s on all of us to learn more to keep Delaware secure,” said Governor Carney. “The CyberStart and Cyber FastTrack programs allow high school and college students to learn more about cybersecurity and how it affects all career paths. I encourage students to take advantage of this opportunity.”
“With cyber-attacks happening every day to well-secured, high-profile organizations, the need for this next generation to fill the skills gap in cybersecurity is essential. These major breaches not only affect the organizations directly attacked, but typically have far-reaching impacts. We must continue to be vigilant, and we need the next generation of cyber defenders to protect against sophisticated bad actors. With programs like these, participants can develop the cyber skills that will serve them well in any career field,” said CIO Gregory Lane.
The CyberStart and Cyber FastTrack programs both offer a series of online challenges that allow participants to act as cyber protection agents to solve cybersecurity-related puzzles and explore related topics such as code-breaking, programming, networking, and digital forensics. For the high school level, the program can be assigned as part of homework, form the basis of an extracurricular club, or students can simply try it on their own. Participating students and their teachers do not need knowledge or experience in information technology or cybersecurity to take part. Everything they need can be learned in the game; however, support and communication about the program to students are needed. Both programs are free for schools and students.
Students who do well in the program can earn access to scholarships and advanced training. During the previous competition, Delaware had 261 high school student participants with 6 award winners in CyberStart America and 76 college students with five award winners in Cyber FastTrack. To see more about this program and last year’s winner, visit Delaware’s CyberStart America and Cyber FastTrack webpage.
To learn more about CyberStart America or to register, visit cyberstartamerica.org. College students can view the program details and register to participate at cyber-fasttrack.org.