Why it matters

Leadership is very much part of a cybersecurity career even if it does not always get talked about that way. Analysts become team leads, engineers become managers, and at every step the ability to communicate, organize, and get people moving in the same direction matters just as much as technical skill.

What it was

I served in officer roles across four student organizations at ODU. As Treasurer of the National Society of Black Engineers I managed finances, tracked expenses, and budgeted for events. As Secretary of Black in Cyber I kept meetings organized, maintained agendas, and made sure communication stayed clear across the organization. As CyberOps Coordinator for the Cybersecurity Student Association I planned and ran our school’s annual Capture the Flag competition, a cybersecurity challenge event where participants solve real technical problems in areas like network security, cryptography, and digital forensics to earn points.

Reflection

Each role taught me something different. Treasurer taught me that managing shared resources is serious and requires transparency. Secretary taught me that the behind the scenes work is what keeps an organization actually running. Coordinating the CTF was the most rewarding because it meant managing a lot of moving parts at once and being accountable for how the whole event came together. Watching students show up and compete in something I helped build was one of the highlights of my time at ODU.

These two pieces highlight my leadership across different student organizations at ODU. The first is a flyer from the Cybersecurity Student Association’s annual Capture the Flag competition, which I coordinated as CyberOps Coordinator. Planning the CTF involved managing headcount, organizing logistics, coordinating food, reaching out to sponsors, and making sure everything ran smoothly on the day. The second is from our end of year kickback event hosted by Black in Cyber, where I served as Secretary. I helped coordinate and organize the event alongside the rest of the team, making sure everything came together for what was a great way to close out the year with the community we had built together.