Cybersecurity competitions showcase UDM’s students, program

Students from University of Detroit Mercy won first, second and third place in the ninth annual Detroit Chapter ISACA Cybersecurity Scholarship Case Competition on April 16. 

Taking first place was the team comprised of Cybersecurity & Intelligence Studies students Preston Duller and JP Martin, and Business Administration student Mark Formosa. 

The team of Cybersecurity & Intelligence Studies major Aaron Hewins and Business Administration student Alexander Kalaj was one of two second-place winners.  

Harrison Haviland-Longo, a Cybersecurity & Intelligence Studies student, was one of three third-place winners and the only one-person team to do so. 

Earlier this month one team of Detroit Mercy students placed third in the National Centers of Academic Excellence Cyber Games Competition and three students participated in the newly developed NICE Challenge Cybersecurity Competition. 

 “Collaborations with significant industry associations such as ISACA allow us to experience outcomes that reflect the excellence of our students and their faculty mentors who adeptly prepare them for exciting professional careers that will shape the 21st Century.” College of Liberal Arts & Education Dean Jocelyn Boryczka said. 

The ISACA competition, which was open to students in all majors, awarded $13,500 in scholarships, with a record of 21 teams from four universities taking part in the event.  

Detroit Mercy’s participation in these competitions were organized by Anne Kohnke, associate professor of Cybersecurity and director of Detroit Mercy’s Center of Cyber, Security & Intelligence Studies.  

“The ISACA competition is a big deal,” Kohnke, who is also principal investigator of Detroit Mercy’s Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Program. “The judges are very seasoned cybersecurity professionals.”  

Students participating in the ISACA competition were given a real-world cybersecurity issue on Friday afternoon, April 14 and asked to solve it in a finite amount of time. Students worked all weekend long, Kohnke said, and presented their solutions on Sunday, April 16. They were scored not just on their solutions, but on their presentation and communication skills. 

The presentations were held in Detroit Mercy’s Center for Cyber, Security & Intelligence Studies. Kohnke and Greg Laidlaw, lecturer and chair of the Cybersecurity & Information Systems department, served as mentors for the participants. It was organized by Sajay Rai, president and CEO of Securely Yours LLC, a Bloomfield Hills-based cybersecurity firm. 

“Our Cybersecurity and Information Systems programs continue to gain ever-greater recognition for their high quality, student-centered approach as a Center for Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense (CAE-CD), designated by the National Security Agency and Department of Homeland Security,” Boryczka said.