+ Broader Impact & Intellectual Merit

The Bay Cyber League project will have broad impact by increasing the number of high school and community college students active in post-secondary education and eventually joining the cybersecurity workforce. With 43% of our project students identified as under-represented in the ICT/cybersecurity fields (e.g. female, African American, Hispanic, low socioeconomic), the number of underrepresented workers in the industry will also increase. Bay Area companies will benefit from the increased diversity in their workforce.

The Bay Cyber League project proposes two goals: 1) address the region’s critical need for more and better-prepared technicians in ICT/cybersecurity through summer cyber camps/competitions to increase student access, learning, and engagement to prepare for a community college ICT/cybersecurity program of study with a Bay Area community college (Certificate of Achievement and/or Associate's Degree), and 2) address the region’s critical need for more and better prepared high school and community college teachers in ICT/cybersecurity. Teachers will receive professional development to support their being cybersecurity competition coaches and mentors for the students.

The intellectual merit of the Bay Cyber League project includes adopting and adapting competition program curriculum to align with industry standards and state model curriculum. Industry alignment will be overseen by the Bay ICT Partnership, a nascent BILT (Business Industry Leadership Team) that we will expand.

+ Goals & Objectives

Goal 1 - Increase the number of underrepresented high school and community college STUDENTS competing in cybersecurity competitions and pursuing a cybersecurity/networking career pathway to completion with a Certificate of Achievement and/or Associate's Degree at a Bay Area community college.

• Objective 1.1 - Ensure more underrepresented high school and community college (8-14th grade) STUDENTS are aware of cybersecurity pathways and cybersecurity competition programs.

• Objective 1.2 - Implement a program of cybersecurity competitions to keep high school and community college STUDENTS interested and engaged in cybersecurity learning throughout the academic year.

• Objective 1.3 - Enhance and maintain the Bay ICT Partnership the Bay Area Business and Industry Leadership Team (BILT) to co-lead and oversee work on the cybersecurity/networking career and competitions pathway.

Goal 2 - Increase the number of high school and community college TEACHERS receiving ongoing technical training/professional development in cybersecurity topics and mentoring to serve as cybersecurity competition coaches for their students.

• Objective 2.1 - Increase and maintain the number of partner high school and community college TEACHERS trained and mentored, then leading and coaching a student cybersecurity competitions team for their school.

+ Project Team

Mr. Richard Grotegut
Professor Emeritus and CIS Adjunct Instructor Principal Investigator (PI)
Overall responsibility for administering the project. Provides leadership and project management, in collaboration with project Co-PIs: Lead/co-lead maintaining the Bay ICT Partnership, the Bay Area Business and Industry Leadership Team (BILT), to guide the focus of the cybersecurity/networking career and competitions pathway. Leads activities to increase and maintain the number of partner high school and community college teachers trained and mentored, then leading and coaching a student cybersecurity competitions team for their school.

Mr. Bijan Houshiar
CIS Instructor
Co-Principal Investigator
Serve as the Co-PI and co-lead with Irvin Lemus to ensure more underrepresented high school and community college students are aware of cybersecurity pathways and cybersecurity competition programs. Co-lead with Denise Moss to increase and maintain the number of partner high school and community college teachers trained and mentored, then leading and coaching a student cybersecurity competitions team for their school.

Mr. Irvin Lemus, Security+, CySA+, WCNA, CISSP
Bay Area Cyber Competitions Regional Coordinator
Co-Principal Investigator
Lead activities to ensure more underrepresented high school and community college students are aware of cybersecurity pathways and cybersecurity competition programs. Lead activities to implement a program of cybersecurity competitions to keep high school and community college students interested and engaged in cybersecurity learning throughout the academic year.

Dr. Denise Moss
Bay Area Cyber Competitions Regional Director
Co-Principal Investigator
Lead activities to increase and maintain the number of partner high school and community college teachers trained and mentored, then leading and coaching a student cybersecurity competitions team for their school. Provide event coordination and assist the PI, Co-PIs, and project team with administrative responsibilities, including coordinating/scheduling regular team meetings with all PI, Co-PIs, and the external evaluator, coordinating/scheduling BILT and advisory team meetings, recording and distributing meeting minutes, event planning/managing for regional competitions, school/college outreach, and data tracking.

Dr. Deborah Hecht
External Evaluator
Develops a detailed Evaluation Plan, coordinates with PI and Co-PIs to identify data sources, develops student surveys, provides formative and summative analysis, and completes required grant evaluation reports.

+ Business Industry Leadership Team (BILT)

The BayICT Partnership will serve as the grant’s Business Industry Leadership Team (BILT) to oversee the CyberCamps and competitions program’s alignment with industry standards/certifications and state model curriculum.

The BayICT Partnership is comprised of subject matter experts in cybersecurity, including individuals from industry, academia, government, and community organizations. Many BayICT Partnership Members serve on Career Technical Education (CTE) Advisory Committees for their local high schools and/or community colleges.

BILT meetings will be held at least twice annually, with additional meetings and communications as needed to provide timely input to the project.

BILT Member Organizations

• Bay Area Community College Consortium
• Cisco
• Consortium of Information Systems Executives (CISE)
• Cybersecurity Think
• Droisys
• FireEye
• GoPro
• HDI Association, San Francisco Bay Area
• Information Systems Audit and Control Association
• Information Systems Security Association, San Francisco Chapter
• Natera
• Ohlone College NSA CAE Cybersecurity Center
• Pacific Hackers Association
• Palo Alto Networks
• SOPHOS
• TachTech

+ Contact Information

Principal Investigator
Richard Grotegut
Regional Director, Industry Engagement,
Bay Area Region, IT and Computer Science
Powered by California Community Colleges
925-354-8785, [email protected], @RichardGrotegut
Diablo Valley College, 321 Golf Club Rd, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523