Georgia is helping bring awareness to the needs in the cybersecurity field with the CyberStart America talent search and competition.
Georgia's Participation
Today (February 18, 2022), Governor Brian P. Kemp announced Georgia's participation in this innovative, online cybersecurity talent search and competition. This program is sponsored by the National Cyber Scholarship Foundation (NCSF) and the SANS Institute.
The University of North Georgia, the Georgia Cyber Center at Augusta University, Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) and the Georgia Department of Education have partnered to create "CyberStart America in Georgia." This is an effort to promote CyberStart in the Peach State and provide $100,000 in cash prizes for students, teachers and schools in the state.
Governor Kemp thanked the above entities for their working in bringing this project together. He highlighted the growth in the cybersecurity field for American businesses and feels Georgia is "uniquely positioned to provide the workforce that will meet this need."
CyberStart America
CyberStart America is a free, entertaining opportunity to bring more light and excitement to the cybersecurity field for high school students.
As of this month, Georgia ranks second in the nation for registrations. The state currently has over 4,600 students from more than 200 school that are signed up.
The CyberStart America competition is open to all high school students. It's a chance for the students to explore cybersecurity and computer science. The competition will give the students a chance to win scholarships and prizes, in addition to recognition for their school.
Registration is open until April 27th, 2022.
“Thank you to Governor Kemp for his leadership in training the next generation of Cyber Stars,” said Michele Guel, President, National Cyber Scholarship Foundation. “Georgia is paving the way in urgently addressing the country’s significant gap in our cyber talent pipeline. We look forward to partnering with the Governor’s Office to recruit thousands of Georgia’s students to this effort.”
Cybersecurity threats are more and more frequent in the world we live in now, an issue not only in Georgia, but across the country. There are many amazing opportunities and successful careers to help guard against these threats for personal and professional organizations. Hospitals, schools, corporations, government agencies and more are continually looking to heighten their cybersecurity, making these jobs in-demand.
Even here in Augusta, Fort Gordon is home for the Cyber Center of Excellence.
The educational partners for Georgia teamed up to raise $100,000 from the private sector to help fund incentives for the program.
Learn more about the CyberStart America Program HERE.
