Northrop Grumman Partnered with Universities, Local School Systems in Colorado to Build Excitement for Cybersecurity, STEM

AURORA, Colo. and COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., Aug. 20, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) partnered again with local high schools and universities to co-host summer camps in July and Aug. featuring hands-on learning opportunities in cybersecurity, clean energy technologies, biomedical engineering, rocketry and robotics.

This summer marked the first time for the Colorado Springs camp and the second time for the Aurora camp. Created to address the shortage of students interested in cybersecurity and the STEM disciplines, the camps were designed to build excitement among youth for these in-demand career fields.

In Aurora, the company partnered with Colorado State University, College of Engineering; Colorado School of Mines; and Cherry Creek Schools to host the camp, held July 21–24, at Grandview High School. Instructed by company engineers and university students, the camp attracted students, grades 9 – 12, from across the Denver metro area.

Highlights included a cybersecurity grand challenge – based on the Air Force Association (AFA) CyberPatriot Competition – presented by the Northrop Grumman Foundation, and several energy conversion challenges associated with clean energy drive systems such as a hydrogen fuel-cell car race. New to this year's camp was a focus on biomedical engineering involving hands-on projects in biomechanics, biomedical imaging, biomaterials, biomedical devices and diagnostics.

In Colorado Springs, Northrop Grumman partnered with the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs (UCCS) to host the camp, Aug. 4 – 8, promoting the theme "STEM is Cool." The camp was held at the UCCS campus and was based on the Aurora curriculum, but also included a focus on rocketry and robotics.

"STEM is cool," said Russ Anarde, corporate lead executive, Colorado, Northrop Grumman Corporation. "Once students experience how STEM drives our designed world, they become engaged and excited about pursuing a career in these fields. These students represent tomorrow's workforce and we are honored to be part of this industry/academia partnership to promote cybersecurity and STEM and make this opportunity possible."

Over the years, Colorado students have been well represented at the AFA CyberPatriot National Youth Cyber Defense competition. In 2012, the Colorado Springs Cadet Squadron, Civil Air Patrol won first place in the All Service Division.

Northrop Grumman is a leading global security company providing innovative systems, products and solutions in unmanned systems, cyber, C4ISR, and logistics and modernization to government and commercial customers worldwide. Please visit www.northropgrumman.com for more information.

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SOURCE Northrop Grumman Corporation