AFCEA-North Carolina

Armed Forces Communications Electronics Association

AFCEA-NC Chapter Luncheon – Eric Bassel, SANS, Guest Speaker

Thursday June 13, 2013 – Thursday June 13, 2013

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Description:

Our next chapter luncheon will be held on Thursday the 13th of June from 1130 am to 1 pm at the Ft. Bragg Officers Club. The Guest Speaker is scheduled to be Eric Bassel, Director, SANS Institute .

The topic will be”The Economic Case for Cyber Warfare”:

 Some say that cyber warfare is inevitable.  Some say that we are already engaged in cyber war.  Others say the reality of this threat is way over hyped.  In this unclassified talk, Eric Bassel will build an economic case for cyber warfare from the point of view of a potential adversary.  He will discuss the logic behind which countries have the greatest incentive to exploit this domain and why they will feel compelled to do this.  Finally, he will explore several likely paths these countries might take to create this reality and, most importantly, what we should do to prepare.

Bassel

Bio – Eric Bassel, Director, SANS Institute

 After graduating from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, Mr. Bassel deployed to combat with the 101st Airborne Division as an Assault Helicopter Platoon Leader. His platoon was part of the initial invasion into Iraq in Operation Desert Storm. Upon return from combat, he assessed and trained to become a Special Forces Pilot for the 160th Special Operations Regiment. He deployed on numerous special operations missions as an attack helicopter platoon leader and operations officer during his 5 years with the 160th. After 9 years in the Army, Mr. Bassel left the service and attended Harvard Business School. Upon graduation, he went to work for Alcoa, serving in a variety of positions and was eventually named the president of a division with operations in the United States, Europe and China. After four years as division president, Mr. Bassel left Alcoa and joined SANS Institute, seeing it as an opportunity to serve his country once again as it faced threats in cyber terrorism.  Over the past six years at SANS, Eric has worked with all four services and other government agencies in developing innovative methods to train and prepare them for cyber warfare.

 

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2012 Science Teaching Tools Grant Recipient

 Students’ learning experience enriched as a result of AFCEA grant:

Eastern Wayne Elementay Students learning with their new mimio machine.

Eastern Wayne Elementay student learning with the new mimio teach system.

I received a grant from the AFCEA-NC Chapter to purchase a mimio teach system for my classroom. My mimio teach has been a great asset for my room in bringing 21st century technology and real world examples to my students. My students have also enjoyed using the system to learn and even teach their classmate! Without it, my students would not have the opportunities in using technology! Thank you so much for your generous donation!

Christie Davis

5th Grade Teacher

Eastern Wayne Elementary

Sharon Morrisey Named Distinguished Young AFCEAN!

Our very own Sharon Morrisey, who is on the Board of Directors as the VP of Publicity as well as the Young AFCEAN assistant VP and assistant VP of Expositions, has been named a Distinguished Young AFCEAN. She will be traveling to San Diego, CA to accept the honor and represent the AFCEA – North Carolina Chapter at the WEST 2013 AFCEA Conference.

Ms. Morrisey is an amazingly energetic and focused young woman who accomplishes every task set before her with exemplary skill and dedication. She remains calm under fire and is a genuine pleasure to work with. It is with great pride we’ve watched her grow so quickly into a force to be reckoned with and there is no better representation of what it means to be a Distinguished Young AFCEAN.

August 9th Luncheon: Science Teaching Tools awards!

Thursday August 9, 2012 – Thursday August 9, 2012

Ft Bragg Club: Hodge Room

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Recipients of the 2011 STT award!

Every year, the North Carolina Chapter of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA) grants several awards up to the amount of $1,000 each to schools in Cumberland County and surrounding areas.

These awards are given to schools with a demonstrated need for money to buy tools, equipment, or material for teaching science courses.

Last year, the chapter gave more than $20,000 to 18 local schools to support science and technology education. Recipients included Benjamin Martin Elementary School, which was destroyed in a tornado that struck Fayetteville, North Carolina, on April 16, 2011. The scholarship donation helped the school re-establish its science teaching tools area.

Please join us in the Hodge Room to welcome and congratulate recipients of the 2012 Science Teaching Tools awards!

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Lasher – FORSCOM: Smaller Budgets and Force Signal Command Focus on Innovation

Bill Lasher, CIO/G6 FORSCOM

Mr. William Lasher, CIO/G6 for US Army Forces Command (FORSCOM), spoke about technology as an enabler for the force at the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA) monthly luncheon at Peaden’s Seafood, Thursday, March 9.
Lasher, a former Army officer, contractor and now senior executive, detailed the role of FORSCOM in shaping the future force, discussed key areas of focus for the command moving forward, and discussed how technology will enable them to better train the force at less cost.

FORSCOM, according to Army.mil, is the Army’s largest command, and “prepares conventional forces to provide a sustained flow of trained and ready land power to Combatant Commanders in defense of the Nation at home and abroad.” Lasher iterated this is a challenging tasking, but one the command is tackling head-on. One of the challenges Lasher sees currently is equipping returning forces with the IT assets needed for time in station and in retrofit for downrange operations. To solve this challenge, Lasher and FORSCOM are looking at Army Baseline IT services or ABITS, as a way to consolidate, standardize and deploy IT services for inbound and outbound commands.

“We want to see the installation as a docking station,” Lasher said. “We want the ability to provide the soldier simplified yet robust IT services whether they are in garrison, at home or in the field,” Lasher said. He mentioned the main challenge to getting there is security and information assurance.

Lasher’s view of the future for FORSCOM and its support of the warfighter is mixed with promise and challenges, too. “As the force returns, drawdowns are sure to occur,” Lasher mentioned. “It’ll be a return to more garrison-based operations. That means our challenge to train the force in a productive way becomes even more important.” And with budgets tightening, greater scrutiny placed on contracts, commands asked to do more with less, Lasher is looking to partner with industry to help him solve many of the challenges.

“One area we’re exploring more is around live, virtual constructive gaming,” Lasher said. “Instead of packing up forces and sending them to a theater for an exercise (e.g. REFORGER), we make use of simulation-based training. This reduces costs in logistics and should amplify training time.”

Lasher also stressed to industry partners that innovation and diversification are two areas they can prepare themselves for the budget confines of a smaller Army. “The Army will get smaller and spend less,” Lasher said. “It’s important for you then, our industry partners, to help us find cost-effective, simple solutions to help FORSCOM complete the mission and help our warfighters maintain a lean-forward posture.”