UW-Stout Polytechnic: Cybersecurity faculty win Pentagon-sponsored competition to build workforce preparedness
Publish Date: 2026-06-10 10:16:00
Source Domain: www.wispolitics.com
A cybersecurity training platform developed by University of Wisconsin-Stout Polytechnic faculty has won a high-stakes, Pentagon-sponsored competition and will now serve as a blueprint for scalable cybersecurity learning nationwide.
The Department of War’s Aligned Skills Curriculum and Experiential Network Design (ASCEND) Challenge received innovative entries from a pool of more than 60 applicants, all of them designated by the National Security Agency as Centers of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity (CAE).
From among these entries, five finalists – including UW-Stout Polytechnic – were invited to make presentations in a “Shark Tank”-style event at the CAE Cybersecurity Community Symposium in Pittsburgh last month.
“Our goal was to show how AI and cloud technologies can help learners build skills faster, respond to cyberattacks more effectively, and prepare for the reality that AI-powered attacks now operate at machine speed,” said UW-Stout Polytechnic Professor Holly Yuan, who made the pitch alongside Instructor Brandon Cross.
The victory underscores UW-Stout Polytechnic’s role as a nationwide leader in applied cybersecurity education: The cybersecurity program was recently ranked at No. 14 in the United States by Programs.com, and UW-Stout Polytechnic student teams continue to excel in state, regional and national cyber defense competitions.
Professor Holly Yuan receives a ceremonial prize check after the competition from Scott Nelson, acting principal director of the Department of War Cyber Academic Engagement Office. / Submitted photo
Model teaches cyber defense skills
The ASCEND Challenge wasn’t just looking for ideas, but for scalable solutions that could train the next generation of the cybersecurity workforce, explained Yuan, director of the university’s B.S. cybersecurity program as well as the B.S. computer networking and infrastructure engineering program. The UW-Stout Polytechnic…
