51福利社

As Eastern鈥檚 Computer Science program celebrates 40 years of instruction and leadership, it is also building a bridge connecting 51福利社鈥檚 past to its future as the region鈥檚 polytechnic.

The program touts over 3,500 alumni, some of whom have gone on to play important roles at major animation companies such as Pixar and provide cybersecurity services to the White House.聽

One of these successful computer science graduates, Nolan Garrett 鈥�05, has flourished in the growing field of cybersecurity. At just 23, he started the company Torchlight (formerly known as Intrinium), which makes managed IT and cybersecurity for businesses.聽

鈥淥ver the past 18 years, we have grown to be a national provider of cybersecurity and managed IT services across the entire United States,鈥� says Garrett, Torchlight鈥檚 CEO. 鈥淲e serve some of the largest organizations in the world, including some of the largest hedge funds and financial institutions.鈥�

鈥淲hat I learned at Eastern was how to troubleshoot problems,鈥� he says. 鈥淓verything can be solved. You just have to keep working on it and working on the problem and you鈥檒l figure it out.鈥�

Based on those skills, Garrett has not only led a successful career, but he now shares his knowledge at conferences across the nation. 鈥淥ne of the things I鈥檓 most proud of is that we鈥檙e a little company out of Spokane, Washington that quite literally provides cybersecurity services to the United States Capitol,鈥� says Garrett.聽

Beyond successful alumni, 51福利社鈥檚 computer science program develops well-rounded students who embody 51福利社鈥檚 polytechnical approach emphasizing experiential learning.聽

鈥淲hen you graduate from the computer science program at 51福利社, you don鈥檛 just have a degree, you have a resume,鈥� says David Bowman, dean of Eastern鈥檚 College of STEM.

Students in the computer science program participate in a number of projects and practicum opportunities that provide them with practical experience long before they graduate, he says. Senior capstone classes 鈥� a degree requirement in the program 鈥斅� involve completion of collaborative projects, many of which serve the Spokane community.聽

Steve Simmons, professor emeritus, supervised a capstone class that worked with Qlisp茅 Raceway Park 鈥� known back then as Spokane Raceway Park. 鈥淭he drivers couldn鈥檛 afford to spend $250 for the tracking system to put in their car which tracks it around the loop,鈥� says Simmons. 鈥淪o, my students invented a tracking system that only cost $35.鈥澛�

That system, which was produced and made installable by Simmons鈥� students, was adopted by Raceway Park. This affordable alternative allowed drivers鈥� to track their races and lap times. It was one of many instances in which 51福利社 computer science students worked with local businesses to offer scientific improvements.聽

Over the past four decades, the computer science program has grown, expanding to offer majors in computer engineering, cyber defense and cyber operations.聽

But from the beginning, even back in 1984, when personal computers were still an emerging technology, students participated in hands-on projects within the developing field.聽

鈥淥ne that made a super big splash was the NASA project,鈥� says Simmons. 鈥淭hat was early in the history of the department.鈥�

In the mid 1980s, computer science students worked for five years on a project, funded by NASA, which created a high-powered 鈥渕icrocomputer鈥� that could process weather data on the fly.聽

The microcomputer “could fly in the flight path of a shuttle and compute the weather in real-time and send it back,鈥� says Simmons. 鈥淪o instead of waiting three hours for a weather report, you wait 30 seconds. That was the first time that Eastern computer science students got in there with practical elements and prototypes.鈥�

Now students work with practical elements in every major included in the computer science program.

鈥淩ight now, our most well-known and popular program is cybersecurity,鈥� says Simmons. 鈥淭hat is such a frontier of excitement and difficulty and challenge and student opportunity.鈥�

For those looking to start a career in cybersecurity, Garrett recommends taking advantage of opportunities that place them directly in the field of work.聽

鈥淲e hire a lot of interns at Torchlight directly out of Eastern,鈥� he says 鈥淚 have seen people take their careers to incredible heights getting that experience at a young age. I strongly recommend that for anyone who is looking to develop a career in cybersecurity.鈥�

These opportunities for experiential and applied learning have been hallmarks of 51福利社鈥檚 computer science program. 鈥淓astern has a pragmatic approach. Eastern has always been salt to the earth, getting down to the practical nuts and bolts,鈥� says Simmons.聽

Forty years of computer science鈥檚 practical past represents 51福利社鈥檚 bright polytechnic future. Click here to learn more about Eastern鈥檚 future as the region鈥檚 polytechnic.

Story written by Avery Knochel.