Pace’s continued success in the National Cyber League, an intercollegiate competition testing students’ cybersecurity mettle, demonstrates one of the many ways Seidenberg continues to stand out as a leader in cybersecurity.
Over the past several years, Pace’s Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems has established itself as a national leader in cybersecurity education. You don’t need to just take our word for it; the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and National Security Agency (NSA) also agree, having designated Pace a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education (CAE-CDE). Furthermore, the National Science Foundation and the United States Department of Defense have collectively awarded Pace millions of dollars in grants and scholarships to further develop Pace’s top talent.
So again, not to brag—when it comes to cybersecurity, we’re kind of a big deal.
What’s the secret to all of this success? It of course starts with the wonderful infrastructure at Seidenberg, from state-of-the-art labs to the accomplished and dedicated faculty. Yet, it is our students—always on the lookout to further improve and develop their skills—who truly enable Seidenberg to stand out.
One example of Seidenberg’s culture of continued excellence is its participation—and continued success—in the National Cyber League (NCL). The league consists of a biannual intercollegiate competition that tests students’ cybersecurity skills through a series of challenges. Unsurprisingly, Pace has consistently outperformed the competition. In Fall 2021, the one of the participating Pace teams placed 7 out of 920 teams; and in Fall 2022, Pace placed 27 nationally among over 7,500 students from 470 colleges and universities.
Furthermore, several Seidenberg students, including computer science major Andrew Iadevaia ’23, placed in the 99th percentile, outperforming nearly all of the other 6,675 students who participated.
“Coming to Pace, I knew very little cybersecurity-wise,” said Andrew. “I went to the first town hall meeting, fall of freshman year, I met Kyle Hanson—who had just recently graduated—and he encouraged me to join NCL. From there I got hooked on it. I went from wanting to be a software engineer writing code, to ‘I want to solve challenges and be challenged.’”
“Even though it’s a competition, it’s a big support group where everyone is really just helping each other out
Andrew’s enthusiasm regarding the competition is echoed by fellow NCL Pace team members. Nora Broyles ’24, a double major in computer science and mathematics with a minor in IT, was a new Pace transfer student when she heard about the competition through her scholarship and joined the team.
“I had heard about the competition, but didn’t join until I transferred to Pace,” said Nora. “It was definitely a positive experience.”
Another competitor, Joseph Paradiso ’24 was also encouraged by older students to enter the NCL after joining the cybersecurity club.
“I didn’t know much coming into it, and I’ve learned a lot. The club guides you in terms of starting out,” said Joseph. “I always had an interest in cybersecurity but doing the league has definitely put me more on the cybersecurity track.”
Each NCL competition, held once in the fall and once in the spring, consists of both individual and team elements. The individual element, which takes place in a 48-hour window over a single weekend, calls upon students to solve as many challenges as possible, and participants can track their progress via a virtual leaderboard. While the team members enjoyed the individual component—and find that it truly tests your abilities and skills under pressure—it is the Pace team component, held over the following weekend, that they find to be the most rewarding.
“The team component is my favorite part—that Saturday, we typically book a room in Seidenberg and the NYC Campus will come to Pleasantville for the day, we’ll stay there working and people bring donuts and pizza,” says Andrew. “It’s a lot of fun, we joke around but we also get to learn new things from each other.”
“Something that surprised me was how supportive everyone is,” added Joseph. “Even though it’s a competition, it’s a big support group where everyone is really just helping each other out.”
The Pace team—which consisted of seventeen students—was led by faculty coach Andreea Cotoranu, who ensures everything regarding the competition runs smoothly in order to put students in the best position to succeed.
“My role as the coach is to connect students with opportunities in the field, and further to promote the students,” notes Cotoranu. “at the cybersecurity program level, we wanted to empower students to advance in the NCL competition, and those students teach the newer students. We want to turn training into a student-driven event.”
As an educator, Cotoranu finds the NCL and related extracurriculars an essential component of a cybersecurity education. While classroom learning is of course vital, students who go the extra mile and take advantage of the many opportunities Seidenberg offers outside of the classroom are able to maximize both their learning and their potential.
“Competitions such as NCL are also important for us as educators. They provide a context for students to practice with their skills in exercises that are fun and collaborative. The structure and motivation the competition offers is very helpful for students; and it’s especially a great opportunity to connect other like-minded students,” notes Cotoranu. “Additionally, it gives students a way to demonstrate their technical skills and to speak to employers about what they do, and how they learn.”
Nora, whose specialization is on the math side, echoed that the competition is a great way to develop a more well-rounded skill set, which can be invaluable when looking to build technical and professional expertise—and stand out amidst a pile of resumes.
“It helps to diversify your skill set because it’s such a broad competition,” says Nora. “It shows willingness to learn outside of your respective discipline.”
All in all, Pace’s success in the National Cyber League is a testament to Seidenberg’s commitment to providing students with top notch experiential learning opportunities; and empowering our talented students do the rest.
“I came here not knowing a single thing about cybersecurity,” says Andrew. “I was able to build my skills up. Any extracurricular activities like this, I recommend doing. They’ll expand on things that aren’t taught in the classroom that could be very beneficial.”
To learn more or get involved with the team, connect with the Cybersecurity Club on Discord (BergCyberSec server, visit our Instagram page @bergcybersec, or reach out to Professor Joe Acampora.
For information about Pace's cybersecurity programs and scholarship opportunities, visit the Cybersecurity Education and Research Lab.
The Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University will bestow the 2023 Robert S. Tucker Prize for Prosecutorial Excellence on Veronica Dragalin, Chief of the Anticorruption Prosecution Office for the Republic of Moldova, in recognition of her outstanding contributions to the field of criminal prosecution and excellence in prosecutorial practice.
The Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University will bestow the 2023 Robert S. Tucker Prize for Prosecutorial Excellence on Veronica Dragalin, Chief of the Anticorruption Prosecution Office for the Republic of Moldova, in recognition of her outstanding contributions to the field of criminal prosecution and excellence in prosecutorial practice.
“Veronica has led an impressive career demonstrating her commitment to the pursuit of justice both as an accomplished Assistant United States Attorney and now in a challenging, and historic, role as head of Anticorruption for Moldova,” said Dean Horace E. Anderson Jr. “She took on this role at a particularly volatile time in the region and made history as the first-ever female in the position. Her tenacity to leave a successful position in the US to lead the fight against corruption in her native country is truly admirable.”
Veronica Dragalin is a dual citizen born and raised in the Republic of Moldova and educated in the United States. She received an undergraduate degree from Duke University and a JD degree from the University of Virginia School of Law. She spent the first years of her career as an associate at the international law firm, Jones Day. After working as a lawyer on civil litigation and international criminal investigations, in 2016, Veronica became a federal prosecutor in Los Angeles where she worked in the Public Corruption & Civil Rights Section and served as the office’s Hate Crimes Coordinator. Veronica tried ten jury trials as a prosecutor and charged more than 50 cases, including against federal and local law enforcement officers for civil rights violations as well as public officials for bribery and other corruption crimes, including a RICO conspiracy case charging Los Angeles City Councilmembers, a Deputy Mayor, and other public officials and individuals involved in a pay-to-play scheme.
On August 1, 2022, Veronica began her current mandate as the Chief of the Anticorruption Prosecution Office for the Republic of Moldova, taking on the challenging role for a country with a long history of systemic political corruption at an especially turbulent time in the region. Her office of approximately 130 personnel currently handles criminal corruption investigations and prosecutions against high-level officials, including the ex-President, the suspended Prosecutor General, members of parliament, judges, and prosecutors.
Veronica is already making an impact in her new role within a short time. According to Transparency International’s 2022 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) published in January 2023, Moldova’s score has increased by three points, one of the most significant improvements made, placing it at 91 out of 180 countries in the CPI. The CPI ranks countries annually “by their perceived levels of public sector corruption, as determined by expert assessments and opinion surveys.”
“Veronica Dragalin’s remarkable career is a reflection of the values and commitment in criminal prosecution that we aim to recognize with this award,” said Robert S. Tucker, Chairman and CEO of T&M, whose generous gift has endowed this annual award at Haub Law. “Prosecuting rogue public officials and fighting corruption crimes in the US and abroad is difficult and often dangerous work, but Veronica has demonstrated her resolve and drive to lead reform here and around the world. We are delighted l to present her with the Robert S. Tucker Prize for prosecutorial excellence and to celebrate her accomplishments among her peers and the global law community.”
The Robert S. Tucker Prize for Prosecutorial Excellence is awarded annually to an individual or a group of individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the field of criminal prosecution and who demonstrate excellence in prosecutorial practice. Honorees are selected each year by a jury comprised of former prosecutors and faculty members from the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University. The award ceremony brings together prosecutors from across the region and state, civic leaders, members of the judiciary, New York City government and the Haub Law community to recognize these distinguished individuals for their work. The prize is made possible by the generous support of Haub Law alumnus and Pace University Board of Trustees member Robert S. Tucker. Past Award Recipients include Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark and the Office of the Bronx District Attorney, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez, former New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood, and Richard A. Brown, the late Queens District Attorney.
The ceremony for the Robert S. Tucker Prize for Prosecutorial Excellence will be held on Wednesday, March 22 at 6:00 p.m. at Pace University in Manhattan, NY. For additional information on the ceremony, please email Rachael Silva.
Haub Law Professor Randolph McLaughlin provides insights and perspectives about police culture and the killing of Tyre Nichols.
An ethics opinion by Bennett L. Gershman, a Pace University law professor and former Manhattan prosecutor, accompanied the letter and said “it is plausible that the Chief Justice’s spouse may have leveraged the ‘prestige of the judicial office’” to “raise their household income.” He added that those concerns, coupled with what he described as the chief justice’s lack of disclosure of potential conflicts, “threaten the public’s trust in the federal judiciary, and the Supreme Court itself.”
In an analysis filed along with the complaint, Pace University law professor Bennett Gershman writes that “it is plausible that the Chief Justice’s spouse may have leveraged the ‘prestige of judicial office’ to meaningfully raise their household income.” “That concern, together with the failure of the Chief Justice to recuse himself in cases where his spouse received compensation from law firms arguing cases before the Court, or at least advise the parties of his spouse’s financial arrangements with law firms arguing before the Court, threaten the public’s trust in the federal judiciary, and the Supreme Court itself,” Gershman wrote.
Pace University student Jonathan Becker, a skateboarder, is quoted in a New York Times story about a movement to revitalize and reopen Brooklyn Banks under the Brooklyn Bridge.
Jonathan Becker, 22, a student at Pace University who used to look over the Brooklyn Banks from his freshman dorm room, was not ready to give up. “We just hoped that it could lead somewhere, but we didn’t know that it would take off,” Mr. Becker said. “It’s one of those spots within the skateboarding community that really has a lot of deep-rooted history.”
Haub Law Professor Randolph McLaughlin provides insights and perspectives about police culture and the killing of Tyre Nichols.
"What's most shocking about it all is the brutality and then at the end, the complete dehumanization of this man. He's not even human to them -- he's not even a person," Randolph McLaughlin, professor at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law and co-chair of the Newman Ferrara civil rights practice, told The Guardian.
Haub Law Professor Bennett Gershman pens an op-ed in The New York Times about potential conflicts of a Supreme Court Justice’s spouse.
An ethics opinion by Bennett L. Gershman, a Pace University law professor and former Manhattan prosecutor, accompanied the letter and said “it is plausible that the Chief Justice’s spouse may have leveraged the ‘prestige of the judicial office’” to “raise their household income.” He added that those concerns, coupled with what he described as the chief justice’s lack of disclosure of potential conflicts, “threaten the public’s trust in the federal judiciary, and the Supreme Court itself.”
Launching officially on May 16, get ready to experience a new Pace Portal with upgraded sections, easy-to-navigate structures, and an overall improved user experience. Try the beta now!
Earlier this semester, Pace’s ITS team launched a beta version of a brand-new Pace Portal, which means you’ll get to choose between the old version (the current one you’re used to) and the new version (which we will transition to on May 16, 2023).
Here are a few of our favorite new features and things to look forward to this spring:
Ready to try the new portal?
Have questions or comments on the new Pace Portal? Reach out to Director of Web and Mobile Services Gabriel Terrizzi at gterrizzi@pace.edu.
Across the country, nearly 40 percent of college students report going hungry, and 52 percent have utilized food pantry services at some point. At Pace, we’re working hard to help offset food insecurity on our campuses and we need your help to do it!
Pace gets internships. At the New York Botanical Garden, Thomas Costella is exploring food justice through the Edible Academy and how the power of community can support food systems in New York City and beyond.
As an International Management student, Caroline Dowers '23 is taking what she's learning in the classroom and putting it to work. Not only is she exploring different countries and cultures, but she's also getting true global business experience that will set her apart from other candidates as she searches for a post-graduation job.
From professional quality documentary production to in-the-field athletics coverage, students in the Media, Communications, and Visual Arts department on the Westchester Campus are gaining valuable experience.
The philosophy of “learning by doing” is undoubtedly at the heart of Pace University’s Media, Communications, and Visual Arts (MCVA) department on the Pleasantville campus. Each semester, MCVA faculty find new and creative ways to immerse students in real-life situations—in the podcasting booth, behind the camera, and in the editing studio. Here’s a snapshot of MCVA’s exciting courses and initiatives and how hands-on learning is impacting students and alumni as they embark on dynamic careers.
Launched during the 2021-22 school year by Associate Professors Michelle Pulaski Behling, PhD, and Kate Fink, PhD, Booth Review is MCVA’s own sports broadcasting initiative through which upper-class MCVA students can intern for credit. Booth Review puts interns in the action, producing podcasts, conducting interviews, and writing articles about Pace athletics, as well as about contemporary issues in the sports world at large. In the fall semester, interns hosted a discussion entitled “Sports, Media, and Activism” as part of Pace’s annual Social Justice Week and aided in research for a journal article on the public relations impact of the National Letter of Intent.
“Booth Review has impacted my career aspirations because it is everything that I want to do,” said Jack Cunningham ’23, Communications. “I want to be a sparkplug type of reporter. I want to be able to do on-air reporting, write articles, and interview athletes. I have only realized how much I loved it during this internship.”
Students from the Cinematography 1 and Lighting: The Craft of Cinematic Artists courses, both taught by Professor Lou Guarneri, MA, teamed up on a superhero action/comedy short film called BoomBox, a follow-up to fall 2021’s Super Like. The production of BoomBox focused on utilizing different lighting techniques to create “dark yet vividly colorful tones.” Students in both classes hosted a premiere of the film for the Pace community on January 26 on the Pleasantville campus.
“Boombox is a love letter to stepping past what's possible,” said Diego Mallens ’23, Digital Cinema and Filmmaking. “I hope that other filmmakers at Pace University see that with a bit of creativity and innovation that they can make any film they set their mind to. Being able to step into the genre I love, and to be a driving force in it, made me more confident than ever that the skills I've been honing in the MCVA department are going to get me where I ultimately want to go.”
The audio studio in the Communications Lab recently got an upgrade, with a new professional-grade mixer and microphones. Access to this state-of-the-art equipment allows audio production to be more user-friendly in courses such as Audio Storytelling and has facilitated the production of more podcasts, including Booth Review and What’s Pleasant?, a podcast developed and managed by Fink that discusses the happenings on campus.
“I chose to take Audio Storytelling to get a better understanding of audio as a whole and of its equipment,” said Mallens. “Being able to use the RodeCaster [podcast mixer] and Zoom Recorder [on-location audio recorder] (to name a few) that focused specifically on audio was a whole new beast for me to tame, especially when audio has always been a weakness of mine. I found myself quickly becoming comfortable with it once I applied myself. I ended up doing more audio design in my free time, working on podcasts or recording narrations for my films.”
The Media, Communications, and Visual Arts department has partnered with Pleasantville Community TV (PCTV), a local television station, for “PCTV Presents the Young Directors.” Under the direction of Guarneri, the partnership provides an opportunity for current students and alumni to showcase their filmmaking to a local television audience. Beginning January 2023, PCTV will air films by Pace students and alumni once a month, including vignettes of interviews with the filmmakers.
“My directing film, Sea Sick, is over a year old now and I remember the lengthy writing process, the small amount of time we had to shoot the film, and the endless hours and weeks of editing by myself,” said alumnus Cory Kinchla ’21, Digital Cinema and Filmmaking, who, after serving as a manager at Smashbox Studios, is now freelancing as a set production assistant for commercials in New York City. “It was the hardest I’ve worked on any project and I’m still happy with the way it came out. PCTV being interested in my film has taught me that working hard and putting my work out for the world to see will lead to things that I never thought I’d be a part of.”
A storied example of experiential learning at Pace, the Producing the Documentary course, led by Professor Maria Luskay, EdD, and Guarneri, gives students a semester-long crash course in producing a real-life documentary on a timely and culturally significant topic. Students engage in all parts of the filmmaking process, including working with state-of-the-art video, audio, and editing equipment, researching the topic, and engaging in on-location producing, filming, and directing.
In Spring 2022, the PaceDocs team premiered Tide to Table: The Remarkable Journey of Oysters, which was filmed in Cape Cod, along the Connecticut shores of the Long Island Sound, and on waterways throughout New York City. The film won best student documentary at the Williamsburg Film Festival this fall and had showings throughout the Northeast—the most ever for a PaceDocs film—including at the Jacob Burns Film Center in Pleasantville, the Mystic Seaport Museum in Mystic, Connecticut, and theaters in Manhattan and in Chatham, Dennis, and Wellfleet, Massachusetts.
This spring, the PaceDocs team will head to France, visiting Laon and Paris over Spring Break to produce a documentary on the love of food, aimed at the slow food movement in France.
“Professor Luskay and Professor Lou Guarneri's Producing a Documentary class influenced me so much,” said Emmy-winning producer Rachel Skopp-Cardillo ’20, Digital Cinema and Filmmaking. “I learned all about teamwork and hard work through the making of two documentaries, Puerto Rico: Hope in the Dark (2018) and Hawaii: Living on the Edge in Paradise? (2019). Working on a PaceDocs documentary is one of the best ways to experience hands-on learning outside of the classroom at Pace. With roles as first assistant director and colorist, I was able to thrive as a filmmaker and gain confidence in knowing that this is what I am supposed to be doing with my life.”
In Luskay’s Communications and Digital Media online graduate course, students were broken into two groups to develop video content for the Berkshire Theatre Group (BTG), using footage from the group’s production of Godspell. Students worked directly with administrators at BTG to create pieces that suited the group’s needs for promoting their brand, reaching new audiences, and engaging potential donors.
“The piece we produced for BTG was ultimately the culmination of a semester’s worth of effort in all phases of pre-production, production, and post-production,” said Caroline O’Kane ’22, MA Communications and Digital Media, who managed one of the production teams, leading team meetings, scheduling editing sessions over Zoom, and liaising with BTG. “We gained hands-on experience working with a real client who had real opinions, recommendations, and requests. We wanted to deliver something that would not only serve a purpose but serve the purpose that was right for them.”
Emmy Award-winning producer and third-generation alumna Rachel Skopp-Cardillo’s success is deeply rooted at Pace.
Pace University Professor of Biology Nancy Krucher, PhD, has received a three-year $400,241 grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study new methods to combat cancer cell development of resistance to targeted treatments.
Associate Professor Satish Kolluri, PhD, and Professor Joseph Lee, PhD, challenge students to explore complex themes of family, love, art, culture, and politics through Hong Kong and Bollywood cinema.