Thank you to everyone who helped support legislation for our continuation as a Center.  As we enter the second biennium of pursuing OCCoE's mission, we are excited to start sharing all of the ongoing accomplishments and upcoming announcements of our continually growing programs and new endeavors.   

OCCoE's mission to enhance cyber resilience across Oregon falls into 4 categories: 

These newsletters will include our most relevant recaps, updates, and announcements related to each category, as well as a highlighted news story and a list of past and upcoming OCCoE related events. 

The Mark O. Hatfield Cybersecurity & Cyber Defense Policy Center, a founding member of the OCCoE, received a generous gift toward our K-12 cybersecurity program from the owners of Fortinet, Ken Xie and Michael Xie. This gift has enabled the establishment of the Fortinet Cybersecurity & Cyber Defense Support Fund at PSU. Fortinet also provided laptops for our summer NW Cyber Camps for K-12 students. We are grateful for the generosity of Ken and Michael and look forward to a strong partnership in advancing K-12 cybersecurity education in Oregon!

Free Cybersecurity Tabletop Exercise, Presentation, & Exhibit Table at OAGITM Fall Conference 9/22-9/25

In partnership with LBL Cybersecurity, OCCoE will be hosting a free cybersecurity tabletop exercise (TTX) at the Oregon Association of Government Information Technology Management Fall Conference on Monday, September 22, from 1:00-5:00pm.  This TTX is designed for Oregon’s public-sector IT leaders and simulates a cyber incident that disrupts essential services. Participants will work through cross-agency coordination, communication challenges, and incident response strategies. The session fosters collaboration and practical problem-solving, aligning with OAGITM’s mission to support effective, secure, and connected IT management across government agencies.

OCCoE Directors will also be presenting on the Center's current and future cybersecurity initiatives throughout the state on Thursday morning, 9/25.  

Building Cybersecurity Resilience for Tribal Communities is a priority for Oregon. PSU’s Cybersecurity & Cyber Defense Policy Center has secured a Future Ready Oregon: Workforce Ready Grant to provide free education, mentorship, and pathways to cybersecurity careers for members of the nine federally recognized tribal communities in Oregon.  OCCoE is looking forward to partnering with more tribal communities over the first year of the program. 

Advanced cybersecurity students at the University of Oregon are now gaining real-world experience providing cybersecurity services to public organizations.  Similar to OSU's long-established program, TSOC offers high-quality cybersecurity services to organizations across Oregon at low or no cost while training the next generation of cybersecurity professionals. Their hybrid service model combines on-premises expertise with capabilities of top-tier vendors, ensuring scalable, round-the-clock protection tailored to an organization's needs.  

OSU's ORTSOC - The Nation's First Cybersecurity Teaching Hospital™ is expanding!  As the region's premier workforce development program, ORTSOC paved the way for the concept of students undertaking multiple cybersecurity clinical rotations under the mentorship of experienced professionals to provide services to public entities, like UO is now also able to do. ORTSOC now serves 14 entities with 87 students enrolled, and is only growing!  

OCCoE Associate Director Dr. Rakesh Bobba presented alongside Cinnamon Albin, Oregon Interim Deputy CISO, and Leslie Kainoa, Oregon Cybersecurity State Coordinator for CISA, at the first annual Curry County Cybersecurity Summit on May 13, 2025 in Gold Beach, OR.  A first of its kind to be hosted in a rural county, this event brought together leaders from local government, special districts, and cybersecurity experts to address the increasing dangers posed by cyberattacks on all regions of Oregon.  OCCoE was grateful to be invited to spread more awareness of our programs throughout the state and looks forward to attending again!  

This spring, OCCoE began hosting our Research Seminar Series to showcase cybersecurity research taking place at each of our partnering institutions.  The three seminars from April-June were fascinating and informative, and their descriptions and recordings are now available on the OCCoE website.