Shawn Waldman – President
Gary Estes – Secretary
Gary Estes serves as the Director of Warren County Technology Services, where he is dedicated to strengthening local government through innovative and community-focused technology solutions. With over 25 years of experience in public safety technology, along with a background in fire services, systems engineering, and disaster response, Gary brings a deep commitment to public service. He is a founding member of the GoCyber Collective, a nonprofit working to build stronger, more resilient communities through cybersecurity education and collaboration.
Paul Craft – Director
Paul Craft is a retired Army General Officer and experienced cybersecurity executive with 31 years of progressive technical and organizational leadership experience. His last job in uniform was the Deputy Commanding General for ARCYBER and Joint Force HQs Cyber (Army), USCYBERCOM.
A West Point graduate in 1993, Paul experienced first hand the advent of the internet, digital communications, satellite advancements, cloud architectures, and both cybersecurity and advance hacking techniques. He was formally trained in multiple military and civilian educational institutions, attaining three masters degrees.
He was the longest serving Chief of Cyber for the US Army and Commandant of the Army’s Cyber and Electronic Warfare School, recruiting and training the Army’s elite cyber Soldiers, warrant officers, and officers. He has served multiple times in the Military District of Washington, working cyber policy and resources in the Department of the Army CIO / G-6 office. He founded and was the first commander of the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) Global Operations Command and was the Director Operations/ J-3 for the Joint Force HQs – DoD Information Networks at USCYBERCOM guiding the unit to Full Operational Capability.
As a trusted cyber leader, he has defended our Nation and engineered, operated and secured advanced networks in peace-keeping operations in Haiti, in armistice along the norther border of the Republic of Korea and in daily operations across the Pacific theater. In wartime in the Middle East and Southwest Asia, he established robust and secure satellite and fiber communications to hundreds of critical outposts supporting US and Coalition partners and culminated his distinguished career in 2024 by directing the cyber operations and active defenses for the DoD’s global network in three theaters simultaneously.
He has been awarded the highest honors in multiple branch associations in the Army, The Silver Order of Mercury for engineering and deploying ISR and communications systems on tethered aerostats used in Afghanistan and the Gold Order of Thor for developing advanced defensive cybersecurity systems and techniques. The Saint Barbara’s award for his work with offensive cyber operations. He has also won an international IT award for developing a $9B IT system that the Army uses today.
He is founder and CEO of Craft Cyber Group, an organization that selects best-of-breed cyber and electromagnetic spectrum companies and helps them achieve their strategic goals by working alongside their Board of Directors and C-suite. Due to his continued commitment to the warfighter, he is dedicated to advancing companies with significant potential in Zero Trust and Artificial Intelligence. Because of his leadership experience and technical background, he was recently selected as President of a venture capital backed AI company.
Melissa Cutcher – Director
No matter what we do for a career, we need each other to survive and thrive personally and professionally. Throughout her career Melissa’s great passion for connecting and inspiring women and men is evidenced in her career choices. From her leadership at BBB Dayton, in growing Women in Business Networking (WIBN) to her current position as the Executive Director of Technology First, she works to strengthen relationships, spur business growth, and inspire those around her.
“Melissa is a person of strong character and integrity and expects that of others. She is objective and realistic. A self-starter and innovative, nothing excites her more than to see an ‘idea’ come to fruition”. That can happen only when people come together to make change come about.
For years, Melissa has been active in the Miami Valley. She volunteers her time by serving on several boards and contributing to many groups and organizations.
Community Involvement:
- Montgomery Co. Workforce Investment Board 2020-present
- University of Dayton MIS Advisory Board 2020-present
- Montgomery Co. Employer’s Advisory Committee 2020-present
- Cin-Day Cyber Committee 2020-present
- Clothes That Work Board Member 2018-present
- Clothes That Work Board Chair 2020-2021
- Girl Scouts Board Member 2019-2022
- Women in Christian Leadership Advisory Board – 2021-present
- Leadership Dayton Class of 2015
- Women’s Leadership Collaborative board member 2014-2016
- WiBN Outstanding Leadership Award 2013
- Huber Heights Rotary 2012-2014
- 2011 WiBN Top 25 Women to Watch
Melissa has Master’s in business administration with a focus on organization leadership. Outside of the office she plays golf, is an avid reader, spends time with her daughter Ashley, husband Jeff, and dogs Bailey and Cooper.
Kyle Jones – Director
Kyle Jones, is the Assistant Dean of Technology, Grants, and External Partnerships at Sinclair Community College in Dayton, Ohio, where he has spent nearly a decade leading innovation in IT education. He also serves on the faculty and has been appointed an AI Faculty Fellow, championing the integration of AI across curricula. Over his career, Jones has co-led or contributed to over $13 million in NSF and NSA grants, including national efforts like the National Cyber Security Training and Education Center (NCyTE) and the National Information Technology Innovation Center (NITIC).
Jones plays a central role in creating workforce pathways in cybersecurity, cloud computing, and AI, building bridges between academia and industry via externships, curriculum development, and cutting-edge lab and data center projects. He is actively involved in Sticker Heist, an NSF-funded cybersecurity simulation challenge that engages students in hacking puzzles and exploits to open a “locked” box of stickers, teaching hands-on security, teamwork, and critical thinking. He is also involved with Cyber Reserves, a program (or initiative) that supports scalable cybersecurity training and readiness.
Currently pursuing his doctorate in Global Security at American Public University, Jones aligns his research around AI governance, workforce development, and global security policy. A committed educator, grant strategist, and innovator, he is dedicated to equipping students and institutions for success in an AI-driven, security-conscious world.
Mike Stark – Director
Mike Stark, University of Cincinnati, Mechanical Engineering, has been a technical Sales Engineer for over 30 years.
Having worked in many different industries, including AeroSystems Research & Development, Automotive, Manufacturing, Municipal Water & Wastewater, Power, Oil & Gas, Industrial Water Treatment, with the last 23 years in Systems Integration.
As the Mid-Atlantic Area Sales Manager for Trihedral Engineering, Mike covers 5 states providing VTScada, an advanced SCADA software platform. Trihedral Engineering is a global software developer that has applications in over 160 countries, covering many verticals.
As over 95% of VTScada’s applications are in Mission Critical industries- with W/WW being one of our largest markets, the increased threat of cyber-security attacks has become increasingly alarming. And brings to light the need for more resources such as the Go Cyber Collective.
Mike and his wife Sheryl, a Professor at Sinclair College, have lived in Beavercreek, Ohio for 31 years.
In his spare time, Mike enjoys family , music, music recording engineering, sports, and aviation history.
