Okaloosa Technical College Ranks 55th in the 2024 National Cyber League Cyber Power Ranking

The National Cyber League (NCL) concluded the Spring 2024 NCL Competition with participation from all over the United States, representing all 50 states. Each season, the NCL publishes its Cyber Power Rankings of the top 100 schools in the competition. These rankings measure students' abilities to work individually and as a team in performing a wide range of cybersecurity tasks. Okaloosa Technical College (OTC) ranked 55th in the nation, with 29 students competing in this competition amongst 7,412 other college-level students. During the Spring 2024 National Cyber League Individual Competition, OTC had a few standout players who competed on an individual basis and performed exceptionally well within the group of 7,412 national competitors (2 and 4-year and technical colleges):

• Joseph "Joey" Markey placed 67, earning a Diamond Ranking and challenge coin

• Hardy Davis placed 219, earning a Diamond Ranking and challenge coin

• Daniel Kraus placed 901, earning a Platinum Ranking

Daniel Sligar, the cybersecurity instructor for OTC, emphasized, "The challenges are an excellent way of reinforcing and demonstrating the practical application of cybersecurity that students are learning within the classroom. Students are not just learning theoretical concepts, but can demonstrate their mastery of different cybersecurity skills through the completion of real-world tasks they will encounter in different fields of cybersecurity once they enter the workforce." Students have 2.5 days to complete cybersecurity challenges of various difficulties from easy to very challenging in nine (9) different domains of cybersecurity: Open Source Intelligence (OSINT), Cryptography, Log Analysis, Network Traffic Analysis, Forensics, Password Cracking, Web Application Exploitation, Reverse Engineering, Scanning & Reconnaissance. "This is a testament to the quality and relevance of the education provided at OTC, and we are proud to share this accomplishment with our community,” stated Jon Williams, Director of OTC. Superintendent Marcus Chambers stated, "This is a remarkable accomplishment for our students who participated and the staff at Okaloosa Technical College. Their commitment and success serve as a model for others in cybersecurity, inspiring admiration and setting a high standard for excellence. Congratulations!"