Faces, Places & Voices Of PVREA: CEC Windsor’s Innovative Classroom

Empowering Future Cyber Defenders: CEC Windsor’s Innovative Classroom

Colorado Early Colleges (CEC) Windsor is elevating its AP Cybersecurity program thanks to a $2,000 Empower Grant from Poudre Valley REA and the leadership of instructor Jonathan Talan.

A 10-year education veteran, Jonathan worked with his students to decide how best to use the grant, ensuring it supports their learning goals.

“This is their class,” he said. “I wanted to make sure they gave input on how they would learn the most.”

The grant funding will be used to purchase a variety of devices for Jonathan’s classroom that enable students to physically do what they have been learning about cybersecurity, defense, and how to think like a hacker in order to protect systems from them.

A USB Rubber Ducky is a device that looks like a flash drive but acts as a keyboard to input keystrokes into a computer, demonstrating how quickly systems can be compromised if physical access is gained. RFID Skimmers are used to intercept and steal data — a form of electronic pickpocketing through radio waves. Raspberry Pi devices are small computers that students will use to code, rebuild, and reprogram.

At the beginning of the school year, students sign an ethical agreement that is a code of conduct outlining responsible and legal behavior when learning and practicing cybersecurity skills. Throughout the school year each unit also includes an ethics lesson, so it is never a forgotten topic.

The new tools provide what Jonathan describes as a sandbox learning environment.

“We will be able to configure hardware and software which gives the opportunity to create our own problems to solve, explore cyber protection, and students will be able to learn from mistakes, reboot, and start over.”

Students in the AP Cybersecurity class are learning concepts and solving problems that do not always have a concrete answer.

“The kids have the opportunity to be experimental and come up with their own game plan on how to execute the task at hand,” Jonathan explained. “It is always my goal as a teacher for students to learn. In this class they learn how to think through their process and explain what they are doing and why — a lesson that is applicable anywhere that they can use in any career path.”

The class participates in the National Cyber League competition to solve real-world cybersecurity challenges such as identifying hackers from forensic data, deciphering files, and recovering from ransomware attacks. After completing their AP testing, the students who score high enough will earn a voucher to take the CompTIA Security+ certification exam. Earning the Security+ certification opens doors to entry level cybersecurity roles and is often a stepping stone to high level certifications. Widely recognized by employers, it demonstrates commitment and career readiness.

This program not only teaches students about technology, it’s equipping them with critical thinking, ethical responsibility, and hands-on experience to tackle real world cybersecurity threats.

Thanks to Jonathan’s innovative approach, these learners are gaining the tools and confidence to excel on their cybersecurity journey and we are proud to support them along the way.

Learn more about our Empower Grant program here — applications for 2026-2027 will open later in the year!