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Now that many of us are vaccinated, it’s fantastic to see colleagues in person. I visited the CCI Coastal Virginia region, which is led by Old Dominion University, earlier this month. It was the first time many of the researchers had been in the same room in more than a year. I toured the impressive cybersecurity facilities at Norfolk State University with Aurelia Williams, director of their Cybersecurity Complex and chair of the CCI Diversity and Inclusion Committee.
COVA CCI also will have a new home later this summer when the 10,000-square-foot Cyber Innovation Park opens. It will house ODU’s School of Cybersecurity, a data center, multiple research labs, teaching labs and classrooms, meeting space, faculty offices, a student cyber incubator, and space to hold student cybersecurity competitions and workshops.
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Many CCI staffers and researchers met face-to-face for the first time during our staff retreat at the Arlington headquarters. We discussed how best to support CCI’s research mission. We also had a lively discussion about research ideas to explore in the coming year and plastered a wall with yellow post-it notes full of suggestions. We also have our first group of interns in the office. You’ll be hearing more from them in the future.
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Another CCI Researcher Wins NSF CAREER Award
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 Congratulations to Cong Wang, an assistant professor in ODU’s Department of Computer Science and Center of Cybersecurity Education and Research, on winning the prestigious National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) program award!
This is a career-defining accomplishment and shows the importance of CCI research. His work focuses on the “privacy-utility conflict” of companies wanting personal data from consumers while consumers want to keep information private. He is addressing this by creating a framework where personal data doesn’t leave edge devices such as routers. Cong also received the COVA-CCI Cybersecurity Research and Innovation Award in 2020.
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Securing the power grid is of prime importance nationally and internationally, particularly in light of recent cyber attacks. CCI researchers Ali Mehrizi-Sani, a Virginia Tech associate electrical and computer engineering professor, and Chen-Ching Liu, American Electric Power Professor at Virginia Tech, have won a $300,000 NSF grant “U.S. France Program for INverter-based reNewable And Cybersecure eLEctrical power system (PINNACLE)” to train 18 U.S. students (six per year for eight weeks) at the Grenoble Institute of Technology (Grenoble INP) in France. The goal is to produce a globally competitive U.S. engineer-researcher workforce.
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Don’t Miss the Virginia Cybersecurity Challenge
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CCI, in partnership with US Ignite, is hosting the Virginia Cybersecurity Challenge to accelerate the Commonwealth’s development of talent and products that enhance cybersecurity.
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Submit your proposal to develop a 5G-enabled and secure prototype for a future commercial product by July 16. Undergraduate and graduate students are encouraged to participate on these researcher-led teams composed of researchers and faculty members at public CCI member universities.
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 Amanda Wise, who hails from Hampton, Virginia and is earning her master’s degree in cybersecurity from ODU, spotted an opportunity to put her classroom skills to use in the COVA CCI Graduate Student Experiential Learning program. She began interning at MI Technical Solutions (MITS) this spring. “They welcomed me and let me jump right into working with the cybersecurity team from day one,” Amanda said. “Everyone at MITS loves to learn and share knowledge.” The internship was so successful that MITS offered Amanda a job. “I believe Amanda came to us with a great set of skills and desire to learn,” said Michael Ihrig, company CEO. Would he hire another CCI intern? “Absolutely,” Ihrig said, “especially if the interns are as qualified as Amanda.” |
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George Mason teamed up with The Children’s Science Museum to offer summer internships to Virginia high school students. Twenty students were selected from 110 applicants across the Northern Virginia region. CCI NoVA plans to fund a second and larger cohort next year. A two-week professional skills development course prepares the students for their summer cybersecurity internship at such companies as Chainbridge Solutions Inc., ManTech Corp., NT Concepts, Oceus Networks, SYUSA Inc., and Widelity Inc.
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We’re excited about our first Cyber Camp, which starts on July 31. You’ll learn some fun summer facts over the next few weeks about the challenge creators. Want to know who likes ‘90s boy band pop, who loves competing in marathons and Iron Man races, and who takes day trips on their motorcycle, then check out our Instagram account every Tuesday, starting June 29.
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Luiz DaSilva
Executive Director
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