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 Army National Guard trains its first Cyber Network Defenders By Tech. Sgt. David Eichaker
                National Guard Bureau
 ARLINGTON, Va. - Two Army National Guard Soldiers recently graduated from the 14-week Cyber Network Defender Course at Fort Gordon, Georgia, and are among the newest Soldiers in the Army Guard to complete the course. Sgt. 1st Class Brantley and Staff Sgt. Vasquez, both cyber analysts from the 1636th Cyber Protection Team, completed the course and learned the skills as part of a growing field within the Army Guard. The 1636th CPT works directly with U.S. Army Cyber Command and over the next few years, the Army Guard is planning to activate additional CPTs, said Army Maj. Lenz, cyber operations officer at the National Guard Bureau. Many of those CPTs will act as surge support to not only the active duty component but also at the state level, he said. For those from the units, that means training to a higher level than traditional information technology Soldiers, said Lenz, noting that students receive training in cyber forensics, vulnerability assessments and threat detection and mitigation. The course included a rigorous curriculum that required a lot of studying and reading, said Vasquez, adding that a typical day often consisted of reading up to 300 pages of classroom materials. "The biggest challenges were the amount of materials against the time you have," he said. Brantley agreed. "It was very intense," he said, adding most of his nights were spent reading and reviewing materials. Brantley, who deployed twice to Iraq and was the honor graduate of his class, said the most challenging part of the course was the sheer volume of materials. "You just had to focus," he said. "It was the only thing you could do. It's not that the material was beyond our scope, but there was just so much of it that you really had to understand all the little nuances and different things with the material to actually understand it all." After graduating from the course, both Soldiers reported to their current unit and began honing the skills and knowledge they learned. "We're doing a lot of (additional) schooling," said Vasquez, adding that he has traveled to different sites in order to complete the training requirement. "I am personally going back and reviewing the materials now and spending more time on the course materials as I apply what was learned," said Brantley. "It constantly keeps my mind going." Although the job can be demanding, it isn't without excitement and enjoyment. "The learning keeps me mentally challenged," Brantley said. "That's what I like about it. I look forward to every day because I know there is something I need to learn or I am going to learn." Brantley said he also enjoys mentoring the younger Soldiers who may not have a strong information technology background. Vasquez also enjoys the challenges associated with learning his new position. "You can go from writing scripts to programming," he said, adding there is always going to be new technology he will have to learn. "It's motivating, interesting and mentally challenging." Although both Soldiers enjoy their new careers, neither could have predicted their military paths would have taken them to cyber defense. "I began my career in (the) regular Army in field artillery, far away from cyber," said Vasquez, adding that he has always liked technology. He also worked as a satellite communications specialist and in automations at the National Guard Professional Education Center prior to transitioning to his current position. Brantley served in the Army Reserve from 1984 to 1992 before leaving for civilian employment. During that time, he worked with computers in a variety of ways. He enlisted in the Army Guard after a 12-year break in service, wanting to use his experiences in software installation, rebuilds and data migration, he said. Brantley said the change to IT was a good career move. "The National Guard has been good to me," he said. "I have received excellent training and learned a lot. My recommendation is that if you have the availability to get this training, it is well worth it. If there are Soldiers out there that want a good strong information technology background, especially in the security side of the house, I would highly recommend going to this course." (Editor's note: First names have been removed for security purposes)
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