Michigan City High School MCJROTC Compete in 2016 Cyber Patriot

Michigan-City-High-School-MCJROTC-Compete-in-2016-Cyber-PatriotThe recent Presidential election campaign put a national spotlight on something cadets in the Michigan City High School (MCHS) Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (MCJROTC) understand well: the importance of Internet security.

Cadets compete in Cyber Patriot, a national cyber security game open to all high school students that is sponsored by the Air Force Association. Its objective is to inspire students to explore careers in cyber security and other science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) disciplines critical to our nation's future. MCHS competed in the first six-hour round of the event on Saturday, November 12th, at MCHS. There will be at least two more rounds in December and January. If they qualify for the national round, they will travel to Washington, DC, in March. All costs incurred during the competition are covered by the Marine Corps. There is no cost to the cadet or Michigan City Area Schools.

Major Tom McGrath, the Senior Marine Instructor, praised the cadets and their desire to prepare themselves for the cyber challenges they will face in their careers. “The cadets on our Cyber Patriot team are also on our Drill Team. They participated in 11 different ceremonies over the past week to honor our veterans in conjunction with Veterans Day, to include one last night. They are here early on a Saturday morning, transitioning to another challenge that enhances our school. To my knowledge, we are the only high school in Northwest Indiana that does Cyber Patriot.”

Master Sergeant Jeff Benak, the Marine Instructor, was very thankful for the expertise provided by Ralph Gee, the faculty adviser for the team. “Mr. Gee is a great teacher, very unselfish with his time and knowledge that he provides for our cadets. He is truly a model teacher who goes above and beyond for students.”

Due to the complicated system of scoring, results will not be available until next week. Regardless, cadets will continue to practice after school to prepare for the next round in December.