National High School Cyber Defense Competition Passes 500 Milestone

ARLINGTON, Va., July 17, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Air Force Association (AFA) announced today that CyberPatriot V, the National High School Cyber Defense Competition, now has more than 500 teams registered to compete! With 47 states, Puerto Rico and U.S. Department of Defense Dependent Schools in Europe and Asia already represented, educators are seizing this opportunity to bolster STEM education in their communities. Only Montana, Iowa and West Virginia have yet to join the national challenge.

CyberPatriot is the one-of-a-kind national cyber security competition for high school students—and the ultimate cyber game! Established in 2008 by AFA, this program provides students hands-on learning about technology, and teaches them how to defend a computer network from real-life computer threat scenarios. Teams across the country compete in a series of online rounds to determine finalists for an all-expenses-paid trip to the nation's capital and the CyberPatriot National Finals Competition in March 2013.

"This time last year we had almost half as many teams registered, so to witness such tremendous growth in our program is exciting," said Bernie Skoch, CyberPatriot Commissioner. "Such growth also puts us in a great position to introduce so many more students to cyber defense, cyber careers and other aspects of operating in the cyber realm. And as a team-based activity that also requires a little out-of-the-box thinking, CyberPatriot is simultaneously giving its participants skills in teamwork and ingenuity."

Teams also benefit from the expertise of the competition's sponsors, including the Northrop Grumman Foundation, CyberPatriot's presenting sponsor, which has contributed mentors, internships and scholarship money to the competition. Other CyberPatriot sponsors include founding partners SAIC and CIAS at the University of Texas-San Antonio, as well as the Air Force Research Laboratory, Microsoft and many more.

Any high school – public, private, charter or home – can field a team for the Open Division, while Junior ROTC units from any Service, Sea Cadets and Civil Air Patrol are eligible to field teams in the All Service Division. The educational experience and materials are identical for students in either division.

Registration for CyberPatriot V closes on September 30, 2012. Coaches can learn more about CyberPatriot and sign up at www.uscyberpatriot.org. Information is also available from the CyberPatriot staff at [email protected].

The Air Force Association is a non-profit, independent, professional military and aerospace education association. Our mission is to promote a dominant United States Air Force and a strong national defense, and to honor Airmen and our Air Force Heritage. To accomplish this, we:

• EDUCATE the public on the critical need for unmatched aerospace power and a technically superior workforce to ensure U.S. national security.
• ADVOCATE for aerospace power and STEM education.
• SUPPORT the Total Air Force family and promote aerospace education.

AFA has 200 chapters nationally and internationally representing more than 108,000 members. Visit AFA on the internet at www.afa.org.

SOURCE Air Force Association

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