NSIC History
The National Security Innovation Competition™, or NSIC, is designed as a one-of-a-kind venue to link college students conducting cutting-edge research on concepts and technologies intended to meet national security capability needs, with government and industry customers.
The NSIC serves as a powerful engine for solving security issues and advancing new concepts and technologies of commercial value. This capability is especially important given our fragile economy, continual threats of sequestration, the need for innovation to solve national and state levels problems, and concerns about our capacity to produce mathematicians, scientists, engineers, technologists, and even forward-looking social scientists.
The competition is designed to facilitate outcomes with impact: such as follow-on research and development funding, start-up businesses, and new jobs for students as they approach graduation while providing government and industry a future STEM-experienced workforce.
The NSIC promotes the importance of education to advance innovation for improved homeland, national, and international security, and a healthy economy. The event is broadly covered by the media, intending to further socialize the venue and validate the Foundation's efforts to promote education and innovation.
EVOLUTION
The NSIC has evolved from having a focus on Colorado universities to its present international level focus. The competition expanded to include Canadian Universities and we expect in the near future to include other countries who are conducting national security research.
We now reach out to 500 colleges and universities in the United States and approximately 200 in Canada to invite future homeland security and defense innovators to submit their technologies and research.
New for 2014 is the addition of a high school level competition. Held in a virtual environment so that students can work on their projects from anywhere in the world. This is especially helpful for those students of military and foreign service professionals who move often. The high school innovation capstone follows the same judging format and adheres to the same goals and criteria for the higher-level university research. The purpose of the high school capstone is to promote the importance of education, inspire high school students to pursue STEM related studies and careers.
Quick Facts about NSIC:
• Several competing teams are conducting research relevant to government issues (national and state levels), such as nuclear detection, cyber protection, infrastructure protection, etc.
• Several previous student teams successfully formed start-up businesses, including:
University of Colorado - UAV Hybrid Engine
USAF Academy - “Fly Eye” sub pixel, ultra-high acuity microchip
Georgia Tech - Pathogen Detection Device
University of Ottawa - Blast Reinforcement retrofits
• The competition is also designed for judges and audience to further mentor student research, partner to commercialize the technology, open avenues for research funding and provide graduate placement with government or industry.
The NSIC has included high-level government and industry technical representatives who attend for insight to technologies emerging from the research labs, as well as identifying future scientists and engineers for their workforce.
The event is broadly covered by the media, intending to further socialize the venue and validate the Foundation's efforts to promote education and innovation.
Post-proceedings material is then distributed after the event to highlight to government and industry all entries in addition to the top ten finalists.
Overall, NSIC serves as an industry, government, and educational need to advance innovation for improved homeland, national, and international security, and a healthy economy.
NSIEP (National Security Innovation Education Program)
The National Security Innovation Education Program is a Build-Out of the NSIC. NHDF saw a distinct need to begin developing the future homeland security and defense STEM workforce at a younger age.
In 2014, the National Security Innovation Education Program will incorporate a High School Capstone event. See more HERE.
The NSIEP develops Pathways that High School students can follow through university and into a career. The Pathways seek to educate, motivate, and incentivize students to prusue degrees/ advanced degrees, and careers in homeland security and defense.
The Pathway educates students to the possibilities available in the fields of homeland security and defense, helps to develop a network for the students to build their resumes while still in school, to incentivize them through university credits or scholarship dollars, and much more.
