On October 7, ECPI University hosted the first Central Florida Cybersecurity Summit to great reviews.
The brain child of ECPI University Orlando CIS Program Director David Cruz, the October Summit coincided with both “Cybersecurity Awareness Month” and ECPI University’s “Tech Month.” The one-day event featured representatives from four unique Cybersecurity chapters: ISSA, ISACA, (ISC)2 and InfraGard.
“ECPI strives to support the needs of students. The Summit armed them with the tools they need to be better cyber defenders in order to help companies and individuals who are now struggling in losing the cyber war. We need more people in the industry.”
– David Cruz – CIS Program Director, Orlando campus
“The Orlando campus was pleased to hold the Summit right here at our location in Lake Mary,” said Campus President Dr. Bruce Smith. “The University understands the importance that cybersecurity plays within our community, state, and nation. This event is just one additional way we live out our mission by providing a student-centered learning environment that promotes the enhancement to each student’s profession.”
Attendees from over 50 companies came to the summit. The collaborative symposium, designed to unite cybersecurity professionals as well as create awareness of cybersecurity to a broader audience of prospective students, succeeded in carrying out ECPI University’s mission.
Cruz’s vision for the Cybersecurity Summit was two years in the making. He wanted to establish more collaboration among cybersecurity professionals all over Central Florida and generate more awareness of ECPI’s role in helping the cybersecurity field.
Cruz used his connections to approach the presidents of several cybersecurity organizations to find out if they would be interested in his plans. He was met with great enthusiasm. With his ECPI colleagues on board with the idea, Cruz’s vision soon became a reality.
The Summit started with keynote speaker, Dr. Terrence J O’Connor, Cybersecurity Program Chair at Florida Tech, Director of the loT Security & Privacy Lab, and educational instructor who delivers a practice based curriculum. O’Connor is a leading authority in the cybersecurity industry and is active in cybersecurity competitions. He led the U.S. Cyber Games team in international cybersecurity competitions, and his students have won the National Cyber League Championship. He discussed a range of topics related to cybersecurity and the internet.
The summit was led by many professionals in the field who took time out of their day to make the event such a success, with some traveling several hours to share their knowledge with attendees.
“It was an amazing conference with so many great speakers at no cost to students,” said Cruz. “It demonstrated when we come together as a community it makes us stronger. ECPI strives to support the needs of students. The Summit armed them with the tools they need to be better cyber defenders in order to help companies and individuals who are now struggling in losing the cyber war. We need more people in the industry.”
The Summit was very well received, Cruz says, and he hopes it will become an annual event. Orlando Campus President Dr. Bruce Smith expressed his deep gratitude to Cruz for all the work he put into the event.
“I am extremely proud of our program director, Mr. David Cruz for the work he continues to do to support the cybersecurity community and to enrich the learning opportunities for our students. I am also grateful for our cybersecurity community partners for making the event a success,” said Dr. Smith.
Congratulations to the Orlando campus on this impactful and informative Cybersecurity event.
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