Dakota State will take cyber education program to South Dakota's nine tribal nations

Morgan Matzen, Sioux Falls Argus Leader
·2 min read
Dakota State University President José-Marie Griffiths speaks about a major announcement for the cyber research industry on Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2022.
Dakota State University President José-Marie Griffiths speaks about a major announcement for the cyber research industry on Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2022.

Dakota State University is taking its CybHER program to South Dakota's nine tribal nations to teach coding, robotics, online safety and cyber concepts to students on the reservations.

The program is meant to address "digital divide" issues, which DSU defines as a lack of access to technology and issues related to knowledge and use.

Taking the program to the nine reservations is made possible through a $27,000 grant from the AT&T Foundation, DSU said in a statement.

CybHER was created in 2013 and has taught cybersecurity topics to a variety of age levels. The program has reached more than 33,000 students from K-12 to college age and beyond.

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“There is a disconnect in how students and the community perceive cybersecurity with how it actually is,” said Kanthi Narukonda, a DSU graduate student in Cyber Defense, and Chief of Operations for CybHER. “By bringing cybersecurity education and awareness to the youth on the nine reservations, we aim to disperse misconceptions about cyber and also educate the students and the community on online safety and robotics."

For this project, CybHER will work with Boys & Girls Clubs near the nine reservations in South Dakota, and DSU students will visit every club over the next year, teaching the basics of coding and cybersecurity. They will also help caregivers understand and mitigate cyber threats.

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In addition, they will leave resources about CybHER Conversations, a bi-monthly national virtual event that features an interview with a high-achieving female professional in cybersecurity to help students understand the different careers in cybersecurity.

CybHER will reserve spots for 10 girls to attend the 2022 GenCyber Girls CybHER camp. This free, annual camp is an opportunity for middle school girls to spend a week at DSU learning about cybersecurity. This year’s camp takes place the week of June 19.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: DSU taking cyber education program to South Dakota's nine reservations