First, credit where it is due. UTSA's Center for Infrastructure Assurance and Security created NCCDC and spent more than two decades building it into a national program. The competition that exists today reflects the work of CIAS and a remarkable network of regional organizers, educators, volunteers, students, sponsors, and public-sector partners.
NCRF is being established to carry that work forward. Its purpose is closely aligned with NCCDC's own: cyber education becomes more valuable when people have the chance to apply it together in realistic conditions.
This new home grows from a longstanding relationship with the program. NCRF founder Alex Levinson first competed in CCDC in 2010, joined NCCDC's core Red Team in 2012, and has spent the years since building infrastructure and capabilities for the competition.
Carrying the program forward
NCCDC already knows what it is. Its regional structure, competition model, and national community have made the program matter for more than two decades. NCRF's goal is to carry forward and enhance the spirit, values, and outcomes that have defined the competition.
At the center of NCCDC is a hard, realistic problem: keep a business running while a capable adversary works against you. Its value comes from the way students, educators, volunteers, sponsors, and the Red Team make that problem real.
Why NCCDC belongs at NCRF
NCCDC belongs at NCRF because it makes readiness visible. It shows how people apply what they know, what teams can do together, and where preparation or tools break down under pressure. That makes it an important bridge between cyber education and workforce capability.
As the foundation grows, NCCDC will remain a flagship example of how current research, credible offensive and defensive capabilities, and well-designed exercises can develop people, produce useful evidence, and advance the field.