CyberPatriot Designates Fairfax County Public Schools as a “Center of Excellence”

The Air Force Association’s CyberPatriot program has announced Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) of Northern Virginia as its fifth CyberPatriot Center of Excellence.

The Center of Excellence designation is awarded to communities and institutions that provide leadership and support to further the educational experiences of their students through the CyberPatriot program. CyberPatriot established the Centers of Excellence program in 2011, and thus far, four other entities –Los Angeles Unified School District, the City of San Antonio, Spokane Public Schools, and Oklahoma’s Rose State College – have been recognized.

Fairfax County Public Schools is the largest public school system in Virginia and 11^th largest in the United States. FCPS has approximately 185,000 students who attend the 200 elementary, middle, and high schools.  FCPS became involved with CyberPatriot in 2011, and since then have been very active, promoting the competition through FCPS e-clips, websites, videos, social media pages, and local community newspapers.

Fairfax County Public Schools also has successfully developed a large network of mentors and business partners who play a critical role in expanding the program throughout the school district. This summer, FCPS will host a cybersecurity summer camp to help grow the program in the region and prepare students to compete in CyberPatriot VII. 

“Fairfax County Public Schools have engaged many individuals in their community, and their unyielding support has not gone unnoticed as they have spurred great interest in their communities on tackling the challenges ahead in cyber,” said Bernie Skoch, CyberPatriot Commissioner. “Both Fairfax County Public Schools and the Air Force Association understand the answer to the challenges our nation faces in cyberspace lies in ‘people’ – training today’s youth to be the next generation of cyber experts, and FCPS has developed innovative ways to sustain an environment for continued learning in cyber and technology. We congratulate them on their designation as our fifth CyberPatriot Center of Excellence.”

To learn more about CyberPatriot’s Centers of Excellence, visit http://www.uscyberpatriot.org/about/centers-of-excellence. 

Scholarship Deadlines Approaching

AFA has three scholarships closing at the end of June. Applications for the Col. Loren J. and Mrs. Lawona R. Spencer Scholarship, Capt. Jodi Callahan Memorial Scholarship, and the Lt. Col. Romeo-Josephine Bass Ferretti Scholarship must be received by June 30, 2014.

Col Loren J. and Mrs. Lawona R. Spencer Scholarship
This scholarship is made possible through a generous endowment from the Spencer estate. It provides funds to United States Air Force Personnel (officer or enlisted, Air Force civilian, full time National Guard and full time Reserve) for them to pursue graduate level education in the management and administration fields in preparation for senior level leadership roles. The Spencers were both very active and loyal Air Force Association members, as well as original members of the Aerospace Education Foundation.

Captain Jodi Callahan Memorial Scholarship
The Captain Jodi Callahan Memorial Scholarship provides financial assistance and recognition to an active duty Air Force full time guard or reserve (officer or enlisted) person who is pursuing a Master's degree in a non-technical field. Captain Jodi Callahan was an AFA National Director and a Trustee of the Aerospace Education Foundation. She had been a life member of AFA. This scholarship is made possible due to the generous donations of her family and friends through the Jodi Callahan Memorial Fund.

Lt Col Romeo and Josephine Bass Ferretti Scholarship
This scholarship is made possible by a bequest from the estate of Lt Col Romeo and Josephine Bass Ferretti and was established for minor dependents of Air Force active duty, Reserve or Air National Guard enlisted airmen pursuing an undergraduate degree in the area of science, technology, engineering or math (STEM). The recipients will be selected based upon high academic standards, good character and financial need.

For more information and specific requirements, please visit http://www.afa.org/informationfor/teachers/scholarshipsteachers or contact Jill Westeyn, Manager of Award and Scholarship, at awards@afa.org.

AFA Receives $250K Grant from the George and Vicki Muellner Foundation

AFA recently announced a $250,000 grant received from the George and Vicki Muellner Foundation to provide scholarships for students participating in Arnold Air Society and Silver Wings.

George K. Muellner is the current Chairman of the Board for AFA, elected in the fall of 2012. He is a Life Member of AFA and has previously served as the Vice Chairman for Aerospace Education, a National Director, and as a member of the Aerospace Education Council. Muellner served 31 years in the U.S. Air Force, retiring as a lieutenant general in 1998 from the position of principal deputy for the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition in Washington, D.C., to which he was assigned in 1995. Muellner went on to work for Boeing Company, retiring in 2008 as president of Advanced Systems for the Integrated Defense Systems business unit.

The generous gift will provide supplemental funding for Arnold Air Society and Silver Wings students for their undergraduate studies.

"Our hope is that this funding will help make lack of financial resources less of a hindrance to the students’ academic excellence and that both Arnold Air Society and Silver Wings members understand they have strong advocates in AFA for their success,” said George Muellner.

Read the full announcement here: http://higherlogicdownload.s3.amazonaws.com/AFA/6379b747-7730-4f82-9b45-a1c80d6c8fdb/UploadedImages/Press%20Releases/2014/June/Muellner%20Scholarship%20Announcement.pdf