COE Hackathon
Join students from across the U.S. in a homeland security-focused virtual hackathon to counter threats to critical infrastructure!
February 25 - 27, 2022
Hackathon Theme: Countering Emerging Threats to Critical Infrastructure
Register no later than February 15, 2022 to participate.
Problem Statements: The hackathon problem statements will be announced prior to the start of the hackathon. We anticipate three problem statements from which student teams can choose from. The problem statements will be related to the hackathon theme, Countering Emerging Threats to Critical Infrastructure. The problem statements are being proposed by Department of Homeland Security component agencies, including the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), among others.
Eligibility to Participate: Students who are part of CIRI or attend the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and are currently enrolled undergraduate and graduate students (masters and PhD) are invited to participate. CIRI students include Summer Research Institute students and MSI Summer Research Team Students.
Collectively the DHS COE Hackathon will include students from the following five Centers of Excellence:
- Maritime Security Center (MSC), led by Stevens Institute of Technology
- Center for Accelerating Operational Efficiency (CAOE), led by Arizona State University
- Critical Infrastructure Resilience Institute (CIRI), led by the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
- Criminal Investigations and Network Analysis Center (CINA), led by George Mason University
- National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology and Education Center (NCITE), led by the University of Nebraska-Omaha
DHS Engagement and Guest Speakers: Experts in critical infrastructure from DHS, industry and academia will be available presenting skills training and mentoring students during the event.
Subject matter presentations will be given during the opening of the event (Friday, February 25) by Dr. Stephen Flynn, a leading expert on critical infrastructure and supply chain security and resilience. Greg Simmons, Program Manager for Minority Serving Institutions (MSI) and workforce development at the DHS Science and Technology Directorate will discuss career opportunities at DHS.
Cash Prizes: $3,000 cash prizes will be awarded to the winners of each of the three problem statements.
Virtual Platforms: The hackathon will utilize Zoom and Discord as the primary communications and working group platforms.
Register to participate no later than February 15, 2022.
Event Contact: Andrea Whitesell, Critical Infrastructure Resilience Institute, whitesel@illinois.edu.
Check back for more information soon!