Governor Ige and the Cybersecurity Manager for Hawaii's Department of Defense Reynold Hioki Named Winners of the SANS Institute's 2017 Difference Makers Awards

BETHESDA, Md., Dec. 5, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- SANS Institute today announced Governor Ige and the Cybersecurity Manager for Hawaii's Department of Defense Reynold Hioki have been named among the winners of the 2017 SANS Difference Makers Award. The Difference Maker Awards were created to honor the unsung heroes in cyber security whose innovation, skill, and hard work have resulted in real successes in information security.

"The cybersecurity talent among Hawaiian students is impressive. Reynold Hioki and the leadership of Cyber Hawaii did a spectacular job at giving students in Hawaii a chance to discover their talent – in some cases their hidden talents. Kudos," said Alan Paller, National Program Manager, U.S. CyberStart and Director of Research, SANS Institute. 

Governor Ige was recognized for his efforts help find, motivate, and develop the state's next generation of cyber security talent by bringing the CyberStart pilot program to students in Hawaii. CyberStart is a forward-thinking skills program designed to inspire the next generation of cyber security professionals while identifying talented young Americans. In addition to providing a unique learning opportunity and scholarships for students, the program can lead to job growth and improved cyber security in Hawaii.

The CyberStart pilot program was managed by Mr. Hioki with help from Arnold Kishi and IT and security leaders at the University of Hawaii. In just two weeks the team signed up 317 Hawaii students. Of the nearly 3,300 students competing from seven states, eight Hawaii high school and college students were in the overall top 50 nationally; 22 Hawaiian students won scholarships for more advanced education in cybersecurity. Hawaii had a far larger number of high scorers and scholarship winners on a per capita basis than any of the other states.

Participant Nicholas Shaw, a junior at Mililani High School sent a note to Governor Ige saying, "I would like to thank the Governor who sponsors the CyberStart program. After this past month I can truly say that my skillset and grasp of a wide amount of the topics covered and tested in the competition has expanded. The program has given me a platform to jump from and compete in future CTFs. I insist that you all continue to sponsor and improve this competition so that many others like myself can be inspired and feel confident in exploring the deeper realms of cyber security."

To learn more about the SANS Difference Makers Awards, visit: www.sans.org/cyber-innovation-awards

About SANS Institute
The SANS Institute was established in 1989 as a cooperative research and education organization. SANS is the most trusted and, by far, the largest provider of cybersecurity training and certification to professionals at governments and commercial institutions world-wide. Renowned SANS instructors teach over 50 different courses at more than 200 live cybersecurity training events as well as online. GIAC, an affiliate of the SANS Institute, validates employee qualifications via 30 hands-on, technical certifications in information security. The SANS Technology Institute, a regionally accredited independent subsidiary, offers master's degrees in cyber security. SANS offers a myriad of free resources to the InfoSec community including consensus projects, research reports, and newsletters; it also operates the Internet's early warning system--the Internet Storm Center. At the heart of SANS are the many security practitioners, representing varied global organizations from corporations to universities, working together to help the entire information security community. (www.SANS.org)

SOURCE SANS Institute