[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 199 (Wednesday, December 21, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1324-E1325]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




CONGRATULATING FLORIDA TECH'S CYBERSECURITY TEAM ON THEIR EXTRAORDINARY 
                           FIRST PLACE FINISH

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. BILL POSEY

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 21, 2022

  Mr. POSEY. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the Florida Institute 
of Technology--L3Harris Institute for Assured Information student 
cybersecurity team, FITSEC, for their perfect accuracy, extraordinary 
score, and first place finish in this fall's 2022 National Cyber League 
tournament on November 6, 2022.
  The National Cyber League team tournament is a biannual national 
competition. This year, 7,500 students from 470 institutions around the 
country competed to solve simulated, true-to-life cybersecurity 
problems. The National Cyber League assesses a team's ability to 
address nine critical cybersecurity workforce categories outlined in 
the NIST NICE Cybersecurity Framework and the NSA Knowledge Units. 
Florida Tech students claimed victory with 100% accuracy and a score of 
2,755 points out of 3,000. With this win, FITSEC has moved Florida Tech 
to the number one spot in the Cyber Power Rankings.
  Founded by NASA scientists and located in the city of Melbourne on 
Florida's ``Space Coast,'' Florida Tech has always been known for its 
strength and contributions in aerospace engineering and space science. 
More recently, the university has also earned its position as a leader 
in cybersecurity research and education. Home to the L3Harris Institute 
for Assured Information, Florida Tech has been recognized as a National 
Security Agency and Department of Homeland Security ``National Center 
of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Research''.
  Florida Tech's rigorous undergraduate cyber operations curriculum, 
modeled after the NSA Cyber Operations Knowledge Units, is developing 
bright young minds that will most certainly be among our nation's 
future leaders in this field. It is good to know that students from my 
district in Brevard County will soon help solve the problems of 
tomorrow, like countering unchecked foreign threats, securing 
intellectual property and private information, and meeting the growing 
need for exceptional cybersecurity professionals in our nation's 
industries, agencies and government.
  According to Florida Tech's provost, executive vice president and 
chief operating officer, Dr. Marco Carvalho: ``The success of FITSEC 
underscores the value of collaborations between industry and academia, 
such as our L3Harris Institute for Assured Information. Here, we have 
some of the best computer scientists and software engineers in the 
world conducting cutting-edge research in cybersecurity, machine 
learning, and artificial intelligence. The same experts then teach, 
mentor and coach our FITSEC students. Finally, these students bring 
their skills to top U.S. companies and organizations, making invaluable 
contributions to the security and stability of vital information, 
systems, and resources.''
  Chair of the cybersecurity program Dr. TJ O'Connor, tells us: ``The 
FITS EC cybersecurity team and cyber operations curriculum contribute 
to our national security and strength by building critical skills in 
the cybersecurity workforce gap. The L3Harris Institute of Assured 
Information and Florida Tech's commitment to excellence in this domain 
is proven by its successful track record, including the recent victory 
in the National Cyber League Team tournament, and resulting number one 
national ranking.''
  The 2022 Florida Institute of Technology's team was coached by Dr. 
O'Connor and consisted of 5 graduate and 2 undergraduate students in 
computer science, including Kourtnee Fernalld, Joshua Connolly, Blake 
Janes, Logan Suarez, Stephen Brustowicz, Alexander Schmith, and Curtice 
Gough. Dr. Sneha Sudhakaran, Florida Tech assistant professor and 
expert in mobile security and forensics, served as a co-coach of the 
team this year as well.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in congratulating Florida Tech and 
these student leaders on their outstanding accomplishments and wish 
them every success in the future.

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