The Future of Women in Cyber: Building an inclusive workforce

Col. Lauren A. Courchaine is the Commander of the 37th Training Wing, Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas. In this position she leads the largest, most diverse training wing in the Air Force known as the “Gateway to the Air Force.” Col. Courchaine is a 2000 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy. She has served in various leadership roles to include squadron, group, air staff, major command, combatant command and joint staff. She has also deployed in support of Operations IRAQI FREEDOM and ENDURING FREEDOM.

LT Kaitlyn DeValk currently serves as the Executive Officer of the 2003 Cyber Protection Team (CPT) in Alameda, CA. 2003 CPT is responsible for protecting the nation’s Marine Transportation System in cyberspace by conducting hunt, assess, and incident response operations. Her previous assignments include duty at Coast Guard Cyber Command from 2019 to 2021 where she led 31 vulnerability assessments on USCG mission essential systems. LT DeValk is a 2019 graduate of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering with High Honors. She additionally holds a Master of Science degree in Computer Science from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Jessica Gulick for over 25 years has led cybersecurity teams, authored a number of national cyber standards, and launched cyber firms. She now focuses on creating global Cyber Esports programs. She founded PlayCyber in 2019, and in 2021 commissioned the U.S. Cyber team in collaboration with the NIST NICE program. She is committed to building an inclusive, global cyber community that accelerates cyber talent and inspires the workforce of tomorrow through cyber games.

Allison Jones is the European Federal Account Executive focusing on providing Cyber upskilling and operational support to Federal entities throughout Europe. While working at Hack the Box, she has supported implementing a defined strategy to support government elements in their mission needs throughout Europe.