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Chriss Koch |
Going the Extra Mile
Chriss Koch
January 2008
How does a young man from Nebraska with an associate's degree in
electronics engineering technology get to Iceland to lead technical
activities for certification of a NATO radar system?
For Chriss Koch, it was a journey marked with dead ends as well
as opportunities. "You could call me a poster child for MITRE's
educational assistance program and for its culture of opportunity
in general," says Koch, a senior information security engineer at
MITRE's Colorado Springs site. "I started out as a computer help
desk worker with a two-year degree and am now a technical leader
with a master's degree."
Chriss Koch has always gone the extra mile on the job, which helped
him get where he is today. Even the spelling of his name goes one
step further. "The two S's is a German spelling, a family tradition
that started with my great-grandfather," he explains.
In the days when videotape recording equipment was cutting-edge
technology, Koch moved to Colorado Springs, where he worked refurbishing
recording heads on some of the earliest video equipment. When his
employer began development of a digital video device that used a
computer as its main interface, he worked on that too. In 1991,
realizing that information systems was the path he wanted to follow,
Koch applied for a job providing computer support at MITRE.
Earning an Education—and a Promotion
Desktop computers were a recent innovation, so Koch helped MITRE's
Colorado Springs staff of about 100 people make sense of the mysterious
new electronic gadgets. "There was no Help Desk then, just me. But
my job was manageable, because there was essentially only one desktop
computer per group. Some of the computers were on wheeled carts,
so they could be moved from person to person. An engineer would
write papers, and then a secretary would type them on the computer."
But desktop computers soon became widely available, and the job
grew too big for one person. Koch realized that his position would
soon be replaced by a more efficient service system. Seeing a roadblock
looming on his career path—and realizing that his opportunities
for growth were limited by his lack of advanced education—Koch
took advantage of MITRE's Basic Educational Assistance Program.
He earned a bachelor's degree in management information systems
from Colorado Technical University in Colorado Springs, with MITRE
paying his tuition. Not long after that, he got a master's degree
in computer science with a concentration in computer systems security
at Colorado Tech; MITRE again paid the tuition.
Koch was by then working in MITRE's Center for Integrated Intelligence
Systems (a part of our Department of Defense federally funded research
and development center), where he was promoted to a job developing
operational architecture products—systems design tools—for
Headquarters Air Force Space Command. Later, he moved to information
systems security work, which led to the project in Iceland.
He went to Iceland twice in 2003 as technical task lead for the
certification project of the Iceland Air Defense System (IADS).
Developed by the U.S. and NATO as an early warning system during
the Cold War era, the IADS consists of a Control and Reporting Center,
the Iceland Software Support Facility, one radar in each of the
four corners of Iceland, and on-island and off-island communications.
At the time of the certification project, the IADS was operated
by the U.S. Air Force, but it is now funded and operated by Iceland.
Working in the Land of Fire and Ice
Because he had a security clearance and some early experience working
with MITRE's VAX computer, which ran a Virtual Memory System (VMS)
similar to that used by IADS, Koch was chosen to go to Iceland.
There, he planned, conducted, and documented security tests to assess
IADS compliance with required technical security controls and the
system's vulnerability to break-ins.
It was an interesting trip for Koch, professionally and personally.
Located in the Atlantic Ocean halfway between Greenland and Norway,
Iceland is about the size of Ohio and home to approximately 300,000
people. Because it's close to the Arctic Circle, there are few hours
of light in the winter or darkness in the summer. According to Koch,
"I was working late one afternoon in early summer, when I looked
at the clock and realized it wasn't late afternoon—or even
early evening. It was 1 a.m."
Based in Keflavik, he frequently ventured out into the countryside—a
volcanic landscape with very few trees, but many glaciers, geysers,
and natural pools of hot water, which accounts for its nickname:
the Land of Fire and Ice.
Besides working with the Air Force in Iceland, he has also served
civilian sponsors as diverse as the Departments of the Interior,
Homeland Security, and Treasury, and the Centers for Medicare and
Medicaid. "I know I'm doing good things for our government and through
them, for all of us. That's very satisfying," he says. "I love my
work. Sure, there are frustrations, but I look forward to Mondays.
I tell my kids to find something they're really interested in. Having
a passion for what you do is what makes work enjoyable."
Koch also enjoys working in a culture that promotes collaboration.
"MITRE recognizes that no one person is an expert on anything and
that people working together create synergy," he says. "I can call
on MITRE employees anywhere in the country—or the world—for
help, and in my experience, they're always glad to give it."
Despite his passion for his work, Koch does have a busy extracurricular
life. After getting his bachelor's degree, he rewarded himself with
flying lessons and earned a private pilot's certificate. He also
hikes and skis in the mountains surrounding Colorado Springs and
loves to go off-roading in his SUV. Clearly, Koch is a man on the
go, literally and figuratively.
—by Faye Elkins
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