CyberPatriot is a cyber-education program that was created to help inspire students to seek a future in IT related careers that are currently in high demand. One of the parts of CyberPatriot is its National Youth Cyber Defense Competition. This nationwide competition is the largest of its kind. There are many different divisions for this competition, but at Copley-Fairlawn City Schools, we are currently only partaking in the High School Division. 

During the competition season, participants compete in teams for up to 4 hours, about once a month, for 3-5 months. There are five rounds, Round 1, Round 2, State Round, Semi-Finals, and Finals. All teams compete in the first three rounds. The scores from the first two rounds decide which tier the teams are placed in. There are three tiers, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. A team's score from the previous rounds will decide which teams go to the fourth round, the Semi-finals. The Finals round is only for the top 12 teams of the Platinum Tier. Teams/participants that make it to the Finals round tend to earn national recognition and scholarship money.

During each round participants work in teams, on at least three virtual computers of differing operating systems. Each round will consist of at least Windows, Windows Server, and Linux (Ubuntu, Debian, or Fedora) computer. Participants will work on securing these computers to the best of their abilities. Participants will also have to secure virtualized, Cisco networking equipment. 

For more detailed information about CyberPatriot check out their webpage here

Each team at Copley-Fairlawn will consist of up to 5 participants. 

During each round of the competition, lunch (usually pizza) will be purchased and each participant will need to bring $5.

Participants are expected to come prepared, ready to learn, work hard, and have fun. 

There will be practices twice a week, on Wednesday and Friday, from 3-5 PM, for the duration of the competition. Once the competition season is over, it is still to be decided whether we will continue practices. 

If a participant cannot make it to a competition, they should contact Coach Anthony, preferably in advance, that they cannot come.

Volunteers may be required to help supervise the teams during competition days.

Competitions and practices will always take place at Copley High School. The only exception to this, is if the teams make it to the National Finals. Teams that make it to the Finals get an all expenses paid trip to Maryland, which is where the Finals take place.