The White House received 1,500 applications for an initiative that seeks to provide cybersecurity training to federal government employees, Nextgov reported Friday.

The Federal Cyber Reskilling Academy program is managed by the CIO Council’s Workforce Committee and the Department of Education and is designed to address the shortage of cybersecurity-trained government employees through fundamental cyber defense analysis training. Applicants completed online tests in critical thinking and problem solving through March 1. Participants who passed will receive notification on April 1 and are required to validate their participation on or before April 15.

“It shows there’s a great desire from our federal employees to transition into the cybersecurity career field,” said Suzette Kent, federal chief information officer at the Office of Management and Budget.

The training is slated to run from April 15 through July and will be held in Washington, D.C.

John Sherman, chief information officer of the U.S. intelligence community, said expanding and modernizing the IC’s information technology environment are his top priorities with intelligence agencies in 2019, FedScoop reported on Friday. The “second epoch” of ICITE seeks intelligence integration and innovation, Sherman said at the recent AFCEA IC IT Day.

“Our adversaries are moving out quickly in many areas such as cyber, artificial intelligence and machine learning, information and asymmetric warfare, and not to mention other capabilities, such as conventional arms and space,” he said.

Among the efforts to help intelligence agencies enhance IT will include interoperability with other federal agencies as well as international partners, particularly Five Eyes members Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

“We’re not seeking a one-size-fits-all set of solutions but we must be capable of collaborating at the speed of mission and without overly customized approaches,” Sherman said.

He added that adopting new commercial tools and technologies would also help the IC better modernize its IT environment.

The U.S. Air Force has begun reorganizing to have cyber-focused personnel and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance teams in a single office to increase coordination of military operations. The service branch said on Friday that combining the functions of the staffs would break barriers and streamline oversight, policy and guidance in a range of operations.

The reorganization also involves elevating chief information officer roles to focus on statutory responsibilities. The merged personnel will operate under Lt. Gen. VeraLinn Jamieson, the newly-appointed deputy chief of staff for intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and cyber effects operations.

Jamieson was confirmed by the Senate to take the position on March 1.

The Census Bureau hosted an event on Friday to provide federal agencies, companies and nongovernmental organizations the opportunity to demonstrate their technology platforms using data from various agencies, FCW reported Sunday.

Several technologists showcased their artificial intelligence platforms, applications and open data-based tools at the demo day in response to the bureau’s Opportunity Project tech sprint. Microsoft presented a chatbot that helps match patients to clinical trials, while IBM built an AI-based system designed to help veterans search for jobs based on their interests and skill sets.

Drew Zachary, director of the bureau’s Opportunity Project and co-director of Open Innovation Labs, said the agency will hold related tech sprints, including one that will encourage citizens to respond to the 2020 Census.

Madeline Mortelmans, principal director for cyber policy working for the undersecretary of defense, said during an Atlantic Council event that the Pentagon has a “comparative advantage” in cyberspace, Fifth Domain reported Saturday. Mortelmans noted that the Department of Defense’s 2018 cybersecurity strategy details the Pentagon’s ability to project power, shape the environment and address threats before they enter the U.S.

“Many of our previous strategies talked about DoD having a role in terms of defend the nation. That’s a traditional DoD mission, but what does that mean in cyberspace?” 

Kenneth Rapuano, principle cyber adviser and assistant secretary of defense for homeland defense and global security, stated in a written testimony to the Senate Armed Services Committee in 2017 that the DoD leading domestic cyber operations related to electoral security “risks upsetting this traditional civil-military balance.”

The U.S. Cyber Command has launched a “defending forward” approach to mitigate adversary attacks before they enter U.S. networks.

The U.S. Navy announced the initial operational capability of the Lightning II aircraft’s carrier variant, the F-35C, has met requirements including safety certification and a complete set of support tools.

The milestone follows a set of qualification tests that the Navy’s Strike Fighter Squadron 147 pursued aboard the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, officials said Thursday.

F-35C fleet squadrons are stationed at Naval Air Station Lemoore where sailors and marines train at tailored facilities to pilot and maintain the aircraft. The U.S. Marine Corps intends to transfer four F-35C squadrons to carrier air wings as the Navy plans other transition efforts regarding the aircraft.

“We will continue to learn and improve ways to maintain and sustain F-35C as we prepare for first deployment,” said Capt. Max McCoy, commodore of the Navy’s Joint Strike Fighter Wing.