Help introduce high school students to cybersecurity
20 underserved participants from community schools in North Carolina
Introductions, ice breakers, and intro to cybersecurity
Introduction to Anticheat
Social Engineering Attacks
Cyber Threats
Cyber Ethics
Application and Network Security
Project day
Project day
Showcase day!
Maniam and Deepesh served as judges for our final competition as well as Alan Saqui, Research Technology Integration Engineer at Netscout, who served as a guest judge.
Our first place team consisting of Michael, Byron, and Ascher made a cipher titled IEM or irrational encryption method. They came up with an encryption method that involved using a different cipher each day which was based on the date of that day.
They took the square root of the day in order to get an irrational number. Each digit in the irrational number was then used as the number to shift the letter in that position.
Our second-place team consisting of Antonio, Marissa, and Connor made a cipher titled the CAM cipher. Their encryption method was coded in python and involved the usage of random integers. In doing this, they made it so that each time the cipher was used, it would encrypt differently based on the random number selected. Knowing these random numbers would be the only way to then later decrypt the message!
We also had a prize for the cyber breach category and this one went to Daniela and Lindsay! The cyber breach they decided to cover was the 2013 Target Data Breach. They were well articulated and covered all aspects of the breach, going into detail about how it happened and how it could have been prevented. Additionally, during their presentation, they showed a great understanding of the concepts and fundamentals that we covered during the camp.
Students worked together to create a cyberdefense from start to finish
Students pitched their projects to professional mentors and competed for first and second place
More than $600 distributed to participants in rewards and incentives
Students leave camp with a finished product, ready to be showcased in a college application or job interview
All students reported a dramatic increase in their understanding of and their comfort with cybersecurity ideas and processes after the camp
Renee Leak & Stacey Weinstein
Ansh, Adwit, Latha, & Mariel
Maniam Palanivelu, Mike Schiller, Brian Bonner, Deepesh Nair, & Alan Saqui
Jayashree Sundaresan is a Senior Technology leader with 24+ years of experience. A servant leader at heart, she strongly believes in creating positive impact to transform people beyond who they think they are and what they think they can achieve. Jayashree is very passionate about empowering women, guiding children, giving back to society and focusing on wellness as a priority. She is also a die-hard sports enthusiast and a singer. She thoroughly enjoys coaching & mentoring people to share and learn. Jayashree holds a Bachelors degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering and an MBA from Santa Clara University, USA.
“I am thrilled to join the Board of Directors at SSF and impact lives by helping with the education of underprivileged, deserving, bright, and passionate students. The vision and mission of SSF aims to pull families out of generational poverty through the skill building, mentoring, training and sponsorship of scholars. This energises me and resonates with my values and beliefs to lead change in communities through working with children, educating them and helping them gain confidence, perspective and a lifelong desire to be a force of positive impact.”
SVP, Head of Digital Innovation, LPL Financial
“Uma is an Innovation Technology Executive with over 20 years of experience in the Financial services industry where she accelerates business value with the use of emerging technology.
Uma’s extensive research in financial technologies such as digital payments, biometrics, augmented reality, and Internet of Things (IoT) has resulted in over 35 issued US patents to her name.
Uma is a Founding LP in Neythri Futures Fund and Founding circle member in Neythri, an organization that promotes south asian women. Being a strong believer of child literacy and education Uma is delighted to assist Shooting Stars Foundation eradicate generational poverty through STEM education.”
Program Manager at NVIDIA
“Kevin has over 10 years experience in leadership roles in the Finance and Technology sectors. Prior to joining NVIDIA, Kevin taught at University of California, Berkeley and helped the school transition from in-person learning to online learning.
Kevin is passionate about learning, teaching, and fostering innovation from future generations. Having witnessed first-hand the positive impact education can have on his students’ career prospects, Kevin is excited to contribute to Shooting Stars Foundation and its mission to break the cycle of poverty through STEM education. “
President, Security Solutions at Neustar, Inc.
“High-energy business leader with passion for driving growth in organizations and cyber security technologies – and education foundations!
SSF’s founder and mission are rooted in empowering others to take control to improve their future. STEM education is a proven and scalable path to break generational poverty.”
Regional Director with the Global Services Department for Cognia,
“Dawna L. Taylor is the Regional Director with the Global Services Department for Cognia, the largest School Improvement organization globally. Before joining Cognia, Ms. Taylor served as the Assistant Vice President of K-12 programs for the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. She also led, designed, and oversaw an out-of-school STEM program for middle and high school students in Baltimore, MD, and Vicksburg, MS. She has been an elementary teacher, reading specialist, assistant principal, and principal in traditional public schools and charter schools.
Ms. Taylor served as Director of Blended Learning Programs for one of the nation’s largest public cyber schools. Her professional expertise is in developing, managing, and consulting for charter schools and STEM Outreach programs across the country. Ms. Taylor has a Bachelor’s Degree from Florida A&M University in Elementary Education and her Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership, Supervision, and Administration from Jones International University. She is the proud mother of two adult children, Raleigh and Morgan.”