Zachary Schultz was a student at Altona Middle School when his computer science teacher first sparked Schultz’s interest in cybersecurity through a competition called CyberPatriot.
“She just told our class in seventh grade, ‘Hey, this is a really cool thing; it’s basically teaching you how to protect a computer,’” Schultz said. “You can go to nationals. You can get offered real jobs.”
Since then, Schultz, an 18-year-old senior at Silver Creek High School, has not only advanced his knowledge in cybersecurity, but also helped to teach his fellow students about the field.
Students thirsty to learn more has inspired a district cybersecurity curriculum and encouraged participation in the national CyberPatriot competition.
In a computer lab at the Innovation Center of St. Vrain Schools on Saturday, Schultz sat nearby as fellow students demonstrated their knowledge in protecting virtual networks during the CyberPatriot semifinals. Two of the district’s nine teams competed in the semifinals at the gold level — the second-highest tier, with platinum being the highest and silver the lowest.
In the CyberPatriot competition, the top 12 teams in the nation advance to a national finals competition in Bethesda, Maryland. Teams have to advance to the platinum tier to reach this level.
The CyberPatriot program was created by the Air Force Association, a nonprofit professional military and aerospace education association. Students are given a scenario in which they have to find cybersecurity weaknesses and strengthen a network’s defenses against hackers. The strategies could involve deleting programs, creating stronger passwords and eliminating unnecessary applications. Teams score points by finding and mitigating vulnerabilities.
“Each round, they will hide a lot more stuff,” Schultz said. “Like, put back doors (a secret way to allow server access) that could be difficult to find.”
Helping to facilitate Saturday’s competition was Beth Cerrone, cybersecurity instructor and technology manager at the Innovation Center.
“They’re getting all the system administrator skills, for sure,” Cerrone said. “Plus, as the rounds go on, it gets more complex. They’re having to troubleshoot, research, all these different real-life skills to think on your feet. They’re doing this in a group format, so they have to collaborate.”
Cerrone said another skill gained by those involved in the cybersecurity competition is a knack for teaching their peers. Schultz is also part of a technology team that helps to teach youth about computer coding and the competition.
There were eight St. Vrain Valley School District freshman and sophomore students competing Saturday. At a cluster of computers, Kaushik Chandana, a 15-year-old Niwot High School student, competed with his team, The Knights.
The challenge Saturday was tough.
“Normally, we can answer the forensics without too much difficulty,” Kaushik said. “You’re allowed to look stuff up for CyberPatriot competitions, but a lot of this stuff is superspecific. Everything we’re looking up is scratching the surface around the true root of the answer, but we can’t exactly pinpoint the answer to the question.”
Though the competition can be exacting, the students said what they like about it is working on a solution together. The group went to middle school together, but now are divided by different high schools.
“It’s just nice to see each other,” Kaushik said.
Fifteen-year-old Ming Liew, a Silver Creek High School student, added:
“It’s a six-hour bonding experience.”
Interest in cybersecurity is growing, Cerrone said. It’s evident not just in the CyberPatriot competition, which now sees thousands across the nation participate, but at the local level, too.
St. Vrain Valley School District students can find introductory cybersecurity classes at the Innovation Center, Mead High School and Silver Creek High School, as well as several middle schools. A district news release about the competition said that over a three-year period, St. Vrain plans to form a cybersecurity pathway option for students, which will include courses in subjects like ethical hacking, Python programming language in cybersecurity, forensics and operating systems like Linux. The release said students will have the chance to take a standalone class in cybersecurity or enroll in the pathway.
This fall, Silver Creek High School rolled out a Pathways in Technology Early College program in conjunction with Front Range Community College that allows students to earn an associate’s degree in cybersecurity by the time they graduate high school.
Schultz’s team, Syntax Error, competed at the platinum tier but didn’t advance to the semifinals this year. Two years ago, the team did advance to be No. 1 in the state in the gold tier.
Schultz hopes his skills in cybersecurity will culminate in a career as a pen tester — a hacker for hire who finds and exposes weaknesses in cybersecurity so defenses can be made stronger.
Cerrone likes seeing how the competition has shaped students into teachers and helped them build invaluable skills that will apply no matter what career path they pursue.
“To me, in real life, the skills that are most important are having troubleshooting skills, having that perseverance and that curiosity,” Cerrone said.
