Security in Education – John Ramsey – BSW #155

John Ramsey is the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) for the National Student Clearinghouse. Prior to this, he served as the CISO for the U.S. House of Representatives. He was selected as one of the top 100 CISOs globally for 2017 and only one of two government CISOs selected. Prior to the House, John has worked in the IT security field for over 25 years. He’s managed security operations for the Department of the Army and Department of State while also serving as the CISO for the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, which oversees the world’s largest defined contribution retirement plan at $480 billion for 4.8 million people. He strives to increase his security expertise and work with the philosophy that “Business needs drive IT versus IT driving the business needs.” The security slant is that the IT Security team needs to ensure the business needs can operate safely and securely WITHOUT hindering functionality.