SIA RISE Scholarship Recognizes 24 Outstanding Recipients
The Security Industry Association (SIA) has recently announced the 24 recipients of the prestigious SIA RISE Scholarship for this year. The SIA RISE Scholarship is a program designed to support the education and career development goals of young industry talent and emerging leaders.
This scholarship program, which is open to SIA student members and RISE members who are employees at SIA member companies, provides each awardee with a $3,000 scholarship to use towards continuing education, professional development courses, SIA program offerings, or other academic and education programs. The scholarship funds can be utilized to enhance knowledge in various areas such as business, human resources, information technology, marketing, sales, project management, security engineering, and risk management.
SIA CEO Don Erickson expressed his congratulations to this year’s class of RISE Scholarship awardees, noting that they are an impressive and diverse group of security professionals and rising stars who are leaving their mark on the industry. He also mentioned that more scholarships were awarded this year than ever before, reflecting the commitment to supporting these inspiring young leaders in their educational and career development endeavors.
Among the recipients of this year’s RISE Scholarship are Zachary Allen, an account executive at Convergint Technologies; Brianna Bonfondeo, an account manager at Traka, ASSA ABLOY Global Solutions; Joi Brown, a control center specialist at Rapid Response Monitoring Services; Brenda Constantin, an account executive at 3Sixty Integrated, a Division of the Cook & Boardman Group; Jonathan Crabtree, a channel sales specialist at Genetec; Taylor Davenport, an HR business partner at i-PRO Americas; Mason Fanning, an end-user specialist at ASSA ABLOY; Natalie Fetsko, a customer success manager at dormakaba; Aishwarya Gandhe, a senior channel marketing coordinator for North America at Genetec; Anish Chandra Jalla, a software developer II at Genetec; Kajaanei Kajenthiran, a security guard at the City of Toronto, Canada; Will Knehr, a senior manager of information assurance and data privacy at i-PRO Americas; Ryan Knoll, an account executive at Pro-Tec Design; Chandni Lalwani, a DevOps engineer at HID Global; Vincent Malenfer-Henard, a security analyst at Genetec; Josh Martin, a mechanical engineer II at dormakaba; Bryn Menzel, a director of strategic accounts, and marketing at 3millID Corporation; Gabriella Moraniec, a contracts manager at GSA Schedules; Taylor Nevells, a digital marketing and content specialist at Wavelynx; Juan Pelayo, a technical support supervisor at i-PRO Americas; Itzel Portillo, a marketing specialist at Allegion; Joel Searle, a program manager at ZBeta; Maria Sturges, a project coordinator, and administrator at Northland Controls.
In addition to the scholarship recipients, SIA would like to extend their gratitude to the individuals and companies that contributed to the 2024 RISE Scholarship fund. These tax-deductible donations were made through the Foundation for Advancing Security Talent (FAST), a nonprofit organization co-founded by SIA and the Electronic Security Association. This organization is dedicated to connecting passionate and innovative professionals with new opportunities in the security industry.
SIA RISE is not just about scholarships; it is a vibrant community that nurtures the careers of emerging leaders in the security industry. The program offers various networking events, mentorship programs, awards, webinars, trade show education tracks, and the annual AcceleRISE conference. This community is open to all employees at SIA member companies who are young professionals under 40 or have been in the security industry for less than two years.
About SIA
SIA is the leading trade association for global security solution providers, representing over 1,500 member companies that shape the future of the security industry. The association protects and advances its members’ interests by advocating for pro-industry policies, creating industry standards, advancing professionalism through education, and providing networking opportunities. SIA sponsors ISC Events expos and conferences, bringing top-level buyers and influencers to its members. Additionally, SIA organizes events like SIA GovSummit and Securing New Ground to enhance members’ positions in the security marketplace.
Learn more about the exceptional honorees and join the SIA RISE community to support the next generation of security industry leaders.