Cybersecurity Education Takes Center Stage at Cyber Innovation Challenge

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif., July 17, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, government, education and industry partners announced the formation of a cybersecurity education organization entitled the California Cyberhub and launched the California Cyberhub website, a virtual, nimble on-line community dedicated to developing the future workforce of ethical cybersecurity experts in California. 

As new and emerging technologies catalyze and reshape the 'Internet of Things' economy, the demand for cybersecurity professionals will continue to increase. A recent study from cyberseek.org, compiled by Burning Glass, CompTIA and NICE, showed a demand for 45,000 cybersecurity positions in California alone. This demand is expected to increase by 10% year over year.

"The California Cyberhub website provides educators at all levels the resources and tools to support students to train for and excel in a cybersecurity career pathway while having fun as they learn," said Amy Tong – Director and State CIO, California Department of Technology. The California Cyberhub concept development was funded by the CA Tech Hire Academy grant, provided by Vice Chancellor Van Ton Quinlivan, under the California Community Colleges Doing What Matters for Jobs and the Economy program.

In addition to providing educational resources, the online tool www.ca-cyberhub.org includes a listing of cybersecurity competitions and events, including last month's California Cyber Innovation Challenge which brought more than 100 student competitors from across the state to compete in a series of problem-solving challenges. The Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo managed The California Cyber Innovation Challenge event alongside the CyberCalifornia coalition, a collection of businesses, state agencies, and educational partners, all of whom are dedicated to reinforcing California's leadership position in cybersecurity. Hosted at California Polytechnic University San Luis Obispo and the affilated California Cyber Training Complex, this event demonstrated the expertise and ingenuity of California's future cybersecurity leaders.

As students participated in the CA Cyber Innovation Challenge, representatives from the Governor's Office of Emergency Services, the Department of Technology, the National Guard, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Los Angeles Unified School District and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo met on the Cal Poly campus to lay out a plan for strengthening the cyber professional career pathway infrastructure, including new training materials and online resources so that colleges can hit the ground running with planning and development at the start of the fall semester.

"It is inspiring to see this diverse group of leaders from across the state working together to increase opportunities and resources for cybersecurity education," said Panorea Avdis, Director of the California Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz). "Private and public sector partners working collaboratively to scale up the resources and platforms for training and skills development is the only way we will meet the demands of our future cybersecurity workforce needs."
California has more than 900 teams in the CyberPatriot program, empowering thousands of students to learn valuable skills in a team setting similar to that of traditional high school sports.  In addition to the CyberPatriot program, the California Cyber Training Complex created a first of its kind "Digital Forensics" Challenge at the California Cyber Innovation Challenge. Students collected and analyzed a combination of digital and physical evidence hidden in a car, thus simulating the process of a modern-day criminal investigation. This statewide competition included teams from an entrepreneurship school, a military academy, and two all-female teams. 

For more information on the Cyberhub initiative, visit http://ca-cyberhub.org/.

About GO-Biz
GO-Biz serves as the State of California's leader in job growth and economic development efforts. GO-Biz offers a range of services to business owners including: attraction, retention and expansion services, site selection, permit streamlining, clearing of regulatory hurdles, small business assistance, international trade development, assistance with state government and more.

About Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
Cal Poly is a nationally ranked, four-year, comprehensive public university located in San Luis Obispo, halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles on California's Central Coast. It is a distinctive learning community offering academically focused students a hands-on educational experience that prepares them for today's scientific and technical world. Cal Poly is consistently ranked a top university for academics, value and graduates' salaries.

About Doing What Matters for Jobs and the Economy
Doing What Matters for jobs and the economy is a four-pronged framework to respond to the call of our nation, state, and regions to close the skills gap. The goals of Doing What Matters for Jobs and the Economy are to supply in-demand skills for employers, create relevant career pathways and stackable credentials, promote student success and get Californians into open jobs.

Contact:
Scott Young
California Cyberhub
[email protected]
805 496 8583

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SOURCE California Cyberhub

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