The symposium comes on the heels of URI being designated a National Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance Education by the National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security.
Two keynote addresses will be delivered. The first keynote speaker will be Mark Weatherford, Deputy Under Secretary for Cybersecurity, Department of Homeland Security. Weatherford has a wealth of experience in information technology and cybersecurity at the Federal, State and private sector levels.
Also delivering a keynote address will be Assistant Director of National Intelligence for Partner Engagement, Lieutenant General Michael T. Flynn, URI Class of 1981. Flynn was commissioned a second lieutenant in Military Intelligence and during his service he led the U.S. intelligence effort in Afghanistan, bringing a different and updated approach to gathering intelligence.
URI President David M. Dooley, Rep. Langevin, and URI Vice President for Research and Economic Development Peter Alfonso will open the symposium at the Center for Biotechnology and Life Sciences Building, 120 Flagg Road. The Cybersecurity Symposium will be from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Registration is required at http://cybersecurity2012.uri.edu or 401.874.2599.
Symposium panelists include: Bret Hartman, Chief Technology Officer and EMC Fellow, RSA, The Security Division of EMC; R. Corby Hovis, Program Director, Division of Undergraduate Education, National Science Foundation; William D. Newhouse, Cybersecurity Advisor, Computer Security Division, Information Technology Lab, National Institute of Standards and Technology; Major Michael George Mannix, Critical Infrastructure Protection, U.S. Army National Guard; Theresa Murray, Executive Director, State of Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency; Robert Pate, Vice President for Cybersecurity, Science Applications International Corporation; and Jinendra Ranka, Program Manager, DARPA Strategic Technology Office. They will participate in panel discussions focused on federal initiatives and partnerships involved in workforce development to address short- and long-term cybersecurity issues.
Rep. Langevin commissioned the University to host this symposium to raise awareness of the need to prepare students and workers at all levels for the technology-based jobs that are available in Rhode Island and nationwide. His Rhode Island Skilled Economy or RISE Tour, which included a forum on career and technical education funding and a presentation on the opportunities for Rhode Island to excel in biotechnology, is taking him to a variety of venues to address closing the skills gap and strengthening the economy. Further, as a member of the U.S. House Armed Services Committee and as co-chair of the Cybersecurity Caucus, protecting national and economic security from cyber threats is one of his top priorities. The first Cybersecurity Symposium was held at URI last year.
A complete agenda with information about speakers is available at http://cybersecurity2012.uri.edu.
Cybersecurity Symposium at the University of Rhode Island
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Opening, 10 a.m.
• Welcome: URI President David M. Dooley
• Opening Remarks: U.S. Congressman James Langevin
• Emcee: URI Vice President of Research and Economic Development Peter Alfonso
Keynote address, 10:30 a.m.
• Mark Weatherford, Deputy Under Secretary for Cybersecurity, Department of Homeland Security. He was previously the Vice President and Chief Security Officer of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, where he directed the cybersecurity and critical infrastructure protection program. Prior to that position, he was with the State of California, appointed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger as the state’s first Chief Information Security Officer.
Federal Initiatives: Workforce, 11:15 a.m.
• Introductions: Victor Fay-Wolfe, Professor, URI Department of Computer Science & Statistics
• Bret Hartman, Chief Technology Officer and EMC Fellow, RSA, The Security Division of EMC
• R. Corby Hovis, Program Director, Division of Undergraduate Education, National Science Foundation
• William D. Newhouse, Cybersecurity Advisor, Computer Security Division, Information Technology Lab, National Institute of Standards and Technology
• Jinendra Ranka, Program Manager, Strategic Technology Office, DARPA
Lunch and Viewing of Student Cybersecurity Research Posters, 12:30 p.m.
Keynote address, 1:15 p.m.
• Lieutenant General Michael T. Flynn, Assistant Director of National Intelligence for Partner Engagement for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. A 1981 URI College of Business Administration graduate, Flynn is an innovative, leading figure in coalition and special operations intelligence operations and is responsible for all intelligence, counterintelligence, planning, warning, and intelligence analysis in support of U.S. combatant commands. Flynn holds an undergraduate degree in Management Science from URI, three graduate degrees, and an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from the Institute of World Politics, Washington, D.C.
Partnerships in Cybersecurity: Government, Industry and Public Institutions Working Together, 2 p.m.
• Introductions: Lisa DiPippo, Professor, URI Department of Computer Science & Statistics
• Major Michael George Mannix, Critical Infrastructure Protection, U.S. Army National Guard
• Theresa Murray, Executive Director, State of Rhode Island Emergency Management Agency
• Robert Pate, Vice President for Cybersecurity, Science Applications International Corporation
Closing remarks, 3:15 p.m.
• U.S. Congressman James Langevin