Coaches and members of the Colquitt County High School CyberPatriot team. From left are Col. Paul Nagy, Kobe Dillard, David Glass, Jose Galvan, Jay Pitts, Kobe Dillard and Cheryl Youse. Not pictured is Master Yates.

NORMAN PARK, Ga. — A team of students from Colquitt County High School in Norman Park, Ga., competed in the semifinals of CyberPatriot, the Air Force Association’s National Youth Cyber Defense Competition.

Established by AFA in 2009, the CyberPatriot National Youth Cyber Education Program is designed to excite, educate, and motivate students toward careers in cybersecurity and other science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines critical to the nation’s future, according to a press release from the high school.

CyberPatriot’s core program, the National Youth Cyber Defense Competition, challenges teams of students across the United States, Canada, and from DoDD schools abroad, to find and resolve cybersecurity vulnerabilities in simulated environments. Top teams from the preliminary online rounds earn all-expenses-paid trips to Baltimore, Md., for the in-person National Finals Competition, where students compete for national recognition and scholarships.

At this high school level, the CyberPatriot field is divided into two divisions: the Open Division for public, private, and home school teams, and the All Service Division for JROTC, Civil Air Patrol, and Naval Sea Cadet Corps teams. Within these divisions are three skills levels, Platinum, Gold, and Silver.

In all, 5,584 teams registered to compete in CyberPatriot X. Of these teams, 807 teams competed as part of the All Service Division Gold tier; CCHS ROTC is among the 231 teams that advanced to the next round from this subdivision.

Led by coaches Col. Paul Nagy and Cheryl Youse, the team of students from Colquitt County High School’s ROTC program excelled in the CyberPatriot X All Service Division qualification rounds, demonstrating teamwork, critical thinking skills, and technical knowledge key to a successful career in cybersecurity, according to the press release. The team’s performance earned it a spot in the Semifinal Round held on Feb. 9.

“This was the first year we competed and we are very proud of the team,” Youse said. “We not only placed 2nd in the Gold Division in the state of Georgia, we were honored to compete in the National Semi-Final Competition and are awaiting those scores.”

Following the Semifinals, the top 13 All Service Division teams will advance to the CyberPatriot X National Finals Competition in Baltimore, Md.

More information is available at www.uscyberpatriot.org or from the CyberPatriot staff at info@uscyberpatriot.org.