Gloria Fritsch’s eyebrows furrow as she stares intently at her computer screen. She is locked deep in concentration as she works her way through a “puzzle.” However, Fritsch is not actually completing a typical puzzle. She is detecting intrusions, investigating security breaches, managing software, installing firewall and encryption tools, and testing security breaches: all components of cybersecurity.
Gloria’s father, Roger Fritsch, described her in three words: funny, loyal, and knowledgeable.
“She knows things that I have no idea why she knows them,” Roger told Spark. “She can get punched in the gut but get back up.”
Roger noted that he is most proud of his daughter’s intellect and resilience. He believes that Gloria’s love for puzzles stems from competition with her older brother.
“To win, she had to get faster than [her brother],” said Roger.
In fact, it is Gloria’s love for puzzles that first drew her to cybersecurity. Gloria vividly remembers the day that the cybersecurity students from East visited her freshman class, promoting the East cybersecurity classes. The freshmen were handed ciphers, a type of puzzle that involves an encrypted message. Gloria enjoyed solving it, so she signed up to take Cybersecurity I her sophomore year.
Cybersecurity is a new, ever-growing field that is constantly shifting, adapting, and evolving. For Gloria, it is just one puzzle after another. Gloria enjoys the constant challenges of cybersecurity, and the fact that there is so much variety in the technological field.
“There’s always new stuff being added [to cybersecurity], and that just makes it really exciting,” Gloria told Spark.
Gloria is now a member of the nationally recognized Cyber Academy at Lakota, which includes all of the cybersecurity courses. Gloria completed AP Computer Science Principles her freshman year, Cybersecurity I her sophomore year, and is now enrolled in Cybersecurity II.
Adding to her involvement, Gloria is in the Women in Cybersecurity club at East and aspires to be a co-president of the organization next year.
Gloria highly recommends taking cybersecurity courses at East, “even if you are not a technologically-savvy person.” She especially recommends AP Computer Science Principles because it is an entry-level course designed for students with no prior computer experience.
“Even if you don’t think you’re going to want to do cybersecurity, I think [AP Computer Science Principles] is really [beneficial] with smart Internet usage,” said Gloria.
Gloria’s Cyber teacher, Jenny Circello, said she adores having Gloria in class. She said that Gloria “really shined” in a recent national cyber competition.
The competition was composed of a series of challenges that the students had to solve, many of which involved skills that the students had not yet covered in class.
“[Gloria] didn’t give up when she was frustrated and earned the second highest score of the juniors competing at [the cyber competition from] East,” Circello told Spark.
Circello characterized Gloria as a model student who is always willing to help other students. Circello praises Gloria for her confidence and willingness to learn.
Cybersecurity is a major interest for Gloria, but it is not her only focus. Being active academically and socially, Gloria is currently enrolled in Latin III and managed to attend all of the football games this year. She loves hanging out with her friends and is the junior chair for the East chapter of the national cancer organization, Relay for Life.
Gloria also considers herself an animal person. She has always had cats throughout her life, but likes dogs as well. She currently owns two cats, Penelope and Elmer –both named after two characters from a popular television show– and a 55-gallon fish tank for her 10 fish.
Although she is a cybersecurity enthusiast, her personal hero is country music icon, Dolly Parton.
“She’s very outspoken about the causes she supports, and I just think that that is very cool,” said Gloria.
Gloria admires Parton for her philanthropic efforts and how “down-to-Earth” the former singer is. Parton has founded numerous charitable and philanthropic organizations, including the Dollywood Foundation that is aimed at reducing poverty and Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, which provides free books to young children.
Reflecting her personal hero, Gloria is also involved with philanthropy and donates her time to helping others. She volunteers twice a week at a food pantry located at a local church, Faith Community United Methodist Church.
Cybersecurity is a large part of Gloria’s world. Between cyber competitions and her enrollment in various cyber-related classes, Gloria’s passion for puzzles has introduced her to new paths, and will help her solve her way through life.
“I know that [Gloria] will be successful in whatever she chooses as a career path,” said Circello. “She is an amazing person.”