Gov. Heineman Recognizes Nebraska’s 2009 Cyber Security Calendar Winners

(Grand Island, Neb.) Gov. Dave Heineman today recognized several elementary school students for having their artwork selected as part of a national competition. The work of three Nebraska students will be featured in the 2009 Cyber Security Calendar.

“It is always great news to see our young people recognized at the national level,” Gov. Heineman said. “Through this calendar, these talented students are getting the message out to their peers across the nation about the importance of being safe online. October is National Cyber Security Awareness month and this is a good backdrop to talk about the importance of cyber security for all of our citizens, particularly our children.”

The national winners from Nebraska are Robbie Van Heufeln of Grand Island Central Catholic, formerly of Knickrehm Elementary in Grand Island, Brooke McCallum of Stolley Park Elementary in Grand Island, formerly of Aurora Elementary in Aurora, and Hailey Paxton of Stuart Public School in Stuart.

Brenda Decker, Nebraska’s Chief Information Officer, said, “These young people have grown up in a world that has always contained computers and technology is an integral part of their lives.  Learning about cyber security needs to be as important as any other safety issue we teach.”

The Cyber Security Calendar project was developed in 2007 to increase awareness among children about Internet safety. The contest is open to fourth and fifth grade students and is coordinated by the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC). More than 150 Nebraska students entered the contest. Winners from individual states were submitted to MS-ISAC for inclusion in the 2009 Cyber Security Calendar. 

The contest encouraged students to use imagination and originality to illustrate a message of Internet safety. Students were asked to create original artwork demonstrating concepts such as not giving out personal information of the Internet, being cautious about what Internet sites they visit, and understanding how to recognize cyber bullying and what to do about it, as well as cyber ethics.

MS-ISAC Chairman William Pelgrin said, “Children are our most vulnerable population online and we must help educate them, as well as their parents, teachers and the community about how to be safe on the Internet. This contest is a fun and creative way to help spread that message.”

The calendar was distributed as part of a nationwide cyber security awareness campaign. Images of the calendar are available online by clicking the “October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month” link on the MS-ISAC Web site, available at http://www.msisac.org.

The MS-ISAC has participants from all 50 States, the District of Columbia, as well as local governments and U.S. Territories. The mission of the MS-ISAC is to raise the level of cyber security readiness and response in each state and with local governments. It serves as a central resource for gathering information on cyber threats to critical infrastructure from the states and providing two-way sharing of information.