Oak Ridge Today

Roane State Foundation wins $6,000 grant from CNS Y-12

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Making the grant presentation, from left, are Robert Keen, chair of the Y-12 Employment Investment Advisory Committee; Scott Niermann, executive director of the Roane State Foundation; Teresa Duncan, Roane State vice president of workforce development and director of the college’s Oak Ridge Branch Campus; Meghan Lovelace, committee secretary; Mike McClamroch, East Tennessee Foundation president and CEO; and Amy Wilson, CNS senior director of transformation. (Photo by Roane State Community College)

The Roane State Foundation has won a $6,000 grant from the CNS Y-12 Community Investment Fund to help adult students in the community college’s programs in computer science, cybersecurity, and mechatronics, a press release said.

CNS operates the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, and the contractor established the fund through the East Tennessee Foundation in 2014 as part of its commitment to Oak Ridge and the surrounding communities.

Officials said the grant will fund scholarships to help students pay for industry-recognized certifications. Those certifications are important tools for graduates to pair with their college degree to demonstrate to employers they have the skills and documentations that often allow graduates to earn higher wages when going to work, the press release said.

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Roane State students analyze Election Commission website for hacking

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Roane State Digital Forensics Cyber Security
A team of students from Roane State Community College’s Digital Forensics class was recently requested by Homeland Security to explore the cyber hygiene vulnerability of the Election Commission website of a West Tennessee county. (Photo courtesy RSCC)

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Roane State team assesses Election Commission website for vulnerabilities

A team of students from Roane State Community College’s Digital Forensics class was recently requested by Homeland Security to explore the cyber hygiene vulnerability of the Election Commission website of a West Tennessee county, said George Meghabghab, head of the college’s computer science division.

The project was initiated by Homeland Security official James Cotter, who met with Meghabghab during July and August to flesh out the project, including expectations from each other and outcomes. Such a project is ongoing on other Tennessee election commission websites, Meghabghab said. He described the efforts as critical tasks of Homeland Security in Tennessee.

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Cybersecurity expert shares career opportunities with Roane State students

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Cybersecurity expert Rob Ashcraft of Sword & Shield Enterprise Security discusses career opportunities with Roane State students. (Submitted photo)

Cybersecurity expert Rob Ashcraft of Sword & Shield Enterprise Security discusses career opportunities with Roane State students. (Submitted photo)

 

By Bob Fowler, Roane State staff writer

In this era of online hacking and ransomware, jobs in cybersecurity are booming, and they pay extremely well, an expert in the field told Roane State Community College faculty and students.

Rob Ashcraft, with the state’s largest firm of its kind—Sword & Shield Enterprise Security of Knoxville—recently gave an overview of the various positions available in the profession.

The demand for those jobs is growing 350 percent faster than other information technology positions, and those with the appropriate certifications can make as much as $55 an hour.

“I think you made a good choice,” Ashcraft told students now enrolled in Roane State’s new cyber defense program, which was launched in the fall 2017 semester. “It’s a great career, and it’s a lot of fun.” [Read more…]

Free coding classes for middle school girls offered in Oak Ridge

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Oak Ridge Computer Science Girls, or ORCSGirls, is on a mission to inspire girls in the community to explore the possibilities of technology and computer science. After reaching more than 500 girls in 2017, the organization is ready to do it again, covering topics from Python and virtual reality to information graphics, robots, cyber security, and much more. (Submitted photo)

Oak Ridge Computer Science Girls, or ORCSGirls, is on a mission to inspire girls in the community to explore the possibilities of technology and computer science. After reaching more than 500 girls in 2017, the organization is ready to do it again, covering topics from Python and virtual reality to information graphics, robots, cyber security, and much more. (Submitted photo)

 

Oak Ridge Computer Science Girls, or ORCSGirls, is on a mission to inspire girls in the community to explore the possibilities of technology and computer science. After reaching more than 500 girls in 2017, the organization is ready to do it again, covering topics from Python and virtual reality to information graphics, robots, cyber security, and much more, a press release said.

The classes are for girls in grades 5-8 with no or little experience in programming, the press release said.

“Events are free, and we even provide snacks,” the press release said. [Read more…]

ORAU sponsors leading students, researchers at Heidelberg Laureate Forum

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Part of the ORAU campus in central Oak Ridge is pictured above on May 29, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Part of the ORAU campus in central Oak Ridge is pictured above on May 29, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

ORAU and the National Science Foundation sponsored 21 top U.S. students and postdoctoral researchers in the fields of mathematics and computer science at the 2017 Heidelberg Laureate Forum in Heidelberg, Germany.

Similar to the Lindau Laureate Meetings for Physics, Chemistry, and Life Sciences, students and postdoctoral researchers attended the week-long Heidelberg Forum to network with Laureates in their STEM fields, as well as with international colleagues. (STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.)

Laureates who are invited to attend the meeting are recipients of the Abel Prize, the Fields Medal (including the Nevanlinna Prize for contributions in “Mathematical Aspects of Information Science”), the ACM A.M. Turing Award, and the ACM Prize in Computing. [Read more…]

Summer coding, technology classes for girls offered in Oak Ridge

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Submitted photo

Submitted photo

 

Oak Ridge Computer Science Girls or ORCSGirls is on a mission to inspire girls in the community to explore the possibilities of technology and computer science, a press release said.

In its short existence since the beginning of the year, ORCSGirls has already run 16 coding and technology events and reached more than 200 middle school girls thanks to TechShopz in a Box by TechGirlz and wonderful volunteers, including many from Oak Ridge National Laboratory (read about them here) and the girls from the Oak Ridge Wildbots, the press release said.

This summer, ORCSGirls has partnered with Girls Inc. of Oak Ridge and is offering three full day workshops for girls aged 13-18 at Roane State Community College in Oak Ridge. On July 8, girls will create their own mobile game and learn about app programming. Topics at the July 15 class will include an introduction to virtual reality, including making 360 degree pictures, building a Google Cardboard, and learning JavaScript. [Read more…]

Roane State launches new program in computer information technology

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Roane State Computer Information Technology

George Meghabghab, right, is the program director for Roane State’s new Associate of Applied Science in Computer Information Technology. (Photo by Roane State Community College)

 

Roane State Community College has launched a new program that includes extensive instruction in computer programming and prepares students for valuable tech industry certifications.

Classes for the new Associate of Applied Science in Computer Information Technology begin this fall. Nearly all of the program’s courses can be taken online.

“We are very excited about the computer information technology program,” program director George Meghabghab said. “Our curriculum is closely aligned with the skills tech companies want in their employees.”

Students will learn to develop applications, design and query databases, maintain and secure networks, and more. Course subjects include HTML and CSS, programming, database concepts, JavaScript, and network routing. [Read more…]

Four female ORHS students win state, national honors in computing awards

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Oak Ridge Schools Logo

Four female students at Oak Ridge High School won state honors and one student was a national winner in computing awards given to young women in 2016.

The Award for Aspirations in Computing by the National Center for Women and Informational Technology honors young women at the high school level for their computing-related achievements and interests, a press release said.

Awardees are selected for their computing and IT aptitude, leadership ability, academic history, and plans for post-secondary education.

The four ORHS students were among 11 state winners from Tennessee. The Oak Ridge students are Serena French, Megan Peters, Tina Wang, and Melissa Yuan. [Read more…]

Two UT College of Engineering groups finalists for R&D 100 List

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By University of Tennessee

The University of Tennessee College of Engineering recently got some good news, as R&D Magazine named two research groups to its list of finalists for the R&D 100.

The joint UT-Y12 Lithium Indium Diselenide Thermal Neutron Imager (LTNI) project includes Assistant Professor Eric Lukosi and Y-12 Joint Assistant Professor Ashley Stowe, both of nuclear engineering, while the joint UT-Oak Ridge National Laboratory Universal Grid Monitoring and Analyzing System (UGMAS) includes Governor’s Chair Yilu Liu, Research Assistant Professor Yong Liu, and Lingwei Zhan of electrical engineering and computer science.

A panel of judges and editors selected groups for inclusion as nominees based on the magazine’s determination of the most technologically significant products introduced in the past year. [Read more…]

JMS girls selected as regional winners in national computer science competition

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Jamie Lindsley and Klara Proffen

Jamie Lindsley, left, and Klara Proffen, right, students at Jefferson Middle School in Oak Ridge, have been selected as regional winners in a national computer science competition for middle school girls. (Submitted photo)

 

Two students at Jefferson Middle School in Oak Ridge have been selected as regional winners in a national computer science competition for middle school girls.

The students, Jamie Lindsley and Klara Proffen, wanted to help patients overcome their anxiety before a MRI scan, so they developed a virtual reality MRI simulator for the national online ProjectCSGirls competition. This online competition promotes computer science among middle school girls and has attracted hundreds of students from around the United States who submit their projects, a press release said.

Lindsley and Proffen have been invited to attend the competition’s national awards gala in June in the Washington area, the press release said.

More on the competition is available here: www.projectcsgirls.com.

More on the project is available here: https://sites.google.com/site/mrisimulator/.

Two UT juniors, including one from OR, awarded prestigious Goldwater Scholarships

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Adam LaClair

Adam LaClair

Benjamin Brock

Benjamin Brock

Two juniors at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, including one from Oak Ridge, have been named 2015 Goldwater Scholars. The two juniors are Benjamin Brock and Adam LaClair.

The Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Program awards scholarships to students studying mathematics, science, and engineering. Each scholarship provides a $7,500 award for undergraduate study and research.

Brock, of Jefferson City, Tennessee, is a Haslam Scholar majoring in computer science. He has done research at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the University of Edinburgh, and UT.

LaClair, of Oak Ridge, is majoring in mathematics and computer science. He plans to pursue a doctorate in mathematics and wants to teach mathematics at the university level. [Read more…]

ORHS: Four state winners, one national winner in computing awards for young women

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NCWIT Awards to Oak Ridge High School

Pictured above from left to right are Olivia Bookout, Patricia Edou, Serena French, and Keith Jackson. Indigo Jackson is not pictured. (Submitted photo)

 

Four Oak Ridge High School students won state honors, and one student was a national winner—the first from East Tennessee—in computing awards given to young women in 2015.

The Award for Aspirations in Computing by the National Center for Women and Technology honors young women at the high-school level for their computing-related achievements and interests, a press release said. Awardees are selected for their computing and IT aptitude, leadership ability, academic history, and plans for post-secondary education.

The four ORHS students were among 11 state winners from Tennessee. The Oak Ridge students are Olivia Bookout, Patricia Edou, Serena French, and Indigo Jackson. [Read more…]