Academy of the Redwoods Team Takes Top Honors in Cybersecurity Competition
The “Mayor’s Cup” is moving north.
The coveted prize, awarded annually at the NorCalCyber Mayor’s Cup cybersecurity competition in April, found a new home among the trees, as first-time participants from Academy of the Redwoods claimed the 2024 Far North high school crown.
Coding Club members Matthew Coyle, Divjot Purewal and Benji Kallen combined to form the winning team in the northernmost division of the statewide competition, which challenges students at all levels to conjure effective cybersecurity solutions in a high-stakes, “on-the-clock” environment. The AR team – all Mayors Cup first-timers –completed a redwoods-region sweep, joining college champions College of the Redwoods and middle school upstarts Redwoods Academy of Ukiah on a day of tall victories.
“For me, it started out as a fun thing for the kids,” admits Academy of the Redwoods Education Specialist and team advisor Jeffrey Bertotti, who entered the competition hoping for nothing more than a unique experience for his three “fourth-years” (the preferred AR term for seniors). “They were up to the challenge from the get-go.”
Through a series of research and coding challenges on the Cyber Skyline platform, Coyle, Purewal and Kallen quickly established their intent to compete, and ultimately scored high enough to edge out competing teams from Foothill and Chico High Schools. The effort yielded “Best New Team” accolades for Academy of the Redwoods, in addition to the prestigious Mayors Cup trophy.
“The victory gave me the motivation to want to continue and expand it for other students,” says Bertotti. “This is something we should keep going.”
Coyle, Purewal, Kallen and their coach were slated to present the traveling trophy to Eureka Mayor Kim Bergel on June 4. The award will stay in Eureka for a full year – and perhaps beyond, if next year’s squad of all-new entrants can manage to defend the title.
“We’re still at the groundbreaking stage,” says Bertotti. “All three of our fourth-years had a lot of experience. The next task is getting the younger students started early so they’ll be ready.”
Elsewhere in the NorCal competition, Sacramento City College’s IT and Cybersecurity Club outpaced teams from second-place Sierra College and third-place Cosumnes River College to score the Greater Sacramento Region college cup.
“The Mayor’s Cup is an awesome opportunity for K-12 and for our college in that it gives students the opportunity to see Cybersecurity in action,” says Alex Torres, IT Instructor at Sierra College and advisor for the silver-medal “Sierra Hackers” team. “The scorecard turns into a learning experience. As students see challenging topics, they also see other schools are completing these challenges, which encourages them to learn more.”
Meanwhile, returning champions “Team Half Dome” from Franklin High School and “The Jaguars” from Toby Johnson Middle School repeated their winning divisional efforts to return their respective trophies to Elk Grove.
“We’ve seen a cohort move through the program – some of those returning championship teams who are graduating high school or community college and have grown to include new coaches and middle school programs,” says Shasta College Director of Employer Partnership Alena Anberg. “We are always excited to see students, and especially rural students, growing their experience and understanding of technology.”
The annual Mayors Cup is the competition portion of a larger statewide effort to raise the profile of cybersecurity pathways in K-12 and college. Supported jointly by SynED, the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office and local workforce agencies like the Sacramento County Office of Education, the spring event kicked off with a virtual “open gym” that gave participants access to the official competition platform at the beginning of March.
In the week leading up to the Mayor’s Cup event, participants connected directly with cybersecurity industry employers and innovators through the “Live @ 5” webinar series. The interactive presentations gave students a chance to explore the future of information security, while rubbing virtual elbows with some of the same industry leaders they’d be trying to impress in the competition. The presentations covered topics like ethical considerations, the importance of mentorships, and the evolving role of information security.
“The ‘Live @ 5’ series is a great resource,” says Anberg. “We hear about the growing demand for workforce in these technology fields every day, and the students get to learn more about what those careers are like day-to-day, [plus] some suggestions on how to get involved from present day professionals in the field.”
The 2024 program also included a series called Career Launch, which provided a platform for current cybersecurity professionals – many of them former Mayors Cup participants and award winners – to give expert advice to the next generation of industry prospects.
“This year, the program had representation from southern California all the way north to Shasta,” says Anberg. “Coming from a rural community, I’ve always been a huge advocate for quality and affordable connectivity in our region.”
Events like the Mayor’s Cup are coming at an opportune time for California, which leads the nation in computer science and IT employment. In an industry projected to surpass $365 billion by 2028, California is staring at a shortage of more than 77,000 cybersecurity workers*. “Bright Outlook” careers like Digital Forensic Analysts, Pen Testers, Information Security Analysts, Systems Managers and more are commanding six-figure salaries as industries and agencies rely increasingly on information security.
“Computer science and ICT careers are one of the few that can bring equity across geography, culture, and skill while boosting access that the communities need, but also industry needs,” says Anberg.
“The field of computer science is competitive,” adds Bertotti. “Any experience we can get for students before they go to college is helpful.”
The instructor couldn’t be prouder of his students’ inaugural Mayor’s Cup effort, and hopes their out-of-the-gate success sparks a tradition of cybersecurity awareness and engagement on the College of the Redwoods campus that houses the Academy. Already, he says, the school’s involvement has made an impact on his ability to improve student pathways.
“As an educator, it’s giving me more resources to help students figure out their future.”
Sources:
*https://www.cyberseek.org/heatmap.html
May 2024
