What Docent Institute does

Docent Institute is a 501(c)(3) charitable educational organization founded in 2018 and headquartered in the Quad Cities area (Davenport/Bettendorf, Iowa), with secondary activity in the Chicago metropolitan area. The organization focuses on cybersecurity, online safety, AI ethics, and STEM education, serving three primary constituencies: K-12 students (with emphasis on underserved communities), undergraduate and graduate students pursuing cybersecurity careers, and working cybersecurity professionals including CISOs and senior security leaders. It is incorporated in Iowa and holds IRS 501(c)(3) and 509(a)(2) public charity status.

The organization's core 'products' are events and educational programs rather than software. Flagship offerings include the annual CornCon Cybersecurity Conference (12th edition in October 2026 at RiverCenter, Davenport, expected to draw 500 professionals); The Children of The CornCon K-12 hacker camp and STEM festival; High School Cybersecurity Career Days in Chicago, suburban Chicago, and Waterloo, Iowa (e.g., 'looCon); Capture the Flag (CTF) competitions for students and professionals; the Security Speakeasy networking event held during RSA Conference (15th annual edition in March 2026, fundraising for student scholarships); the Docent/IEEE webinar series on AI ethics and digital citizenship; seasonal Kids' Hacker Camps at Eastern Iowa Community Colleges; and college scholarships administered in partnership with the ISSA Education Foundation ($2,000 per recipient). Distribution occurs through in-person venues in the Midwest and Chicago, virtual webinars, and a network of educational institution and industry partnerships.

The business model is nonprofit: revenue derives from tax-deductible individual donations, corporate event sponsorships, conference ticket sales (with early-bird pricing and discount codes), and partnership-administered scholarships. The organization operates with 1-10 paid staff and is led by Founder/President/Chairman Dr. John D. Johnson and VP of Educational Programs Dr. Somchai Rice, with a Board of Directors that includes former CIA CTO Bob Flores, WWT Global Head of Cyber Advocacy Kate Kuehn, and other senior cybersecurity leaders. No external funding rounds, investors, or parent organization have been disclosed.

Name

Docent Institute

Legal name

Docent Institute

Website

https://docent.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Docent Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2018 that delivers cybersecurity, online safety, and STEM education through events like CornCon, Kids' Hacker Camps, and the RSA Security Speakeasy, serving K-12 students, college students, and cybersecurity professionals across the Midwest and Chicago.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cybersecurity Education and Training

NAICS

Computer Training (61142), Professional and Management Development Training (611430)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

STEM, Digital Literacy & Maker Education Nonprofits (BPAGADAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

STEM Assessment, Badging & Competition Platforms (EDAFANAJ), Information Technology (IT) & Cybersecurity Certifications (EDAAANAA), Certification & Credentialed Creator Programs (MPACALAI)

Keywords

• Cybersecurity education
• STEM education programs
• Cybersecurity conferences
• K-12 STEM outreach
• Cybersecurity workforce development

Headquarters

HQ city

Bettendorf

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: As a 501(c)(3) public charity, Docent Institute relies on tax-deductible donations from individuals and organizations. The organization promotes donation options through its website and events.
2. Corporate Sponsorships: Corporate sponsors support CornCon and other events. Sponsors receive recognition at events and benefit from exposure to cybersecurity professionals and students. The organization actively seeks sponsors for its events.
3. Conference and Event Revenue: Revenue from conference tickets, including early bird pricing and full-price tickets for CornCon. The organization also provides scholarship tickets for those who cannot afford attendance.
4. Student Scholarships: Docent offers college scholarships in partnership with ISSA Education Foundation ($2000 scholarship for undergraduate or graduate studies) and provides scholarship tickets to events.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Docent Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides cybersecurity, online safety, AI ethics, and STEM educational programs through K-12 hacker camps, high school and college career days, Capture the Flag competitions, scholarships, webinars, and conferences. Its flagship offerings include the annual CornCon Cybersecurity Conference in Davenport, IA and the Security Speakeasy networking event held at RSA Conference for senior security leaders.

Product overview

Docent Institute is a 501(c)(3) charitable educational institute focused on cybersecurity, online safety, and STEM education. Rather than a software product company, Docent Institute provides educational programs and events including CornCon Cybersecurity Conference (annual Midwest cybersecurity conference), The Children of The CornCon kids' hacker camps, high school cybersecurity career days, CTF competitions, Docent/IEEE webinar series, and Security Speakeasy networking events. The organization also administers college scholarships through partnerships. Docent Institute operates as a unified educational nonprofit with programs spanning K-12 students, college students, and cybersecurity professionals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CornCon: Premier Midwest annual cybersecurity conference organized by Docent Institute, held in Davenport, IA. Includes The Children of The CornCon kids hacker camp and STEM festival.
• The Children of The CornCon

Products and services

• CornCon Cybersecurity Conference Annual Midwest cybersecurity conference held at RiverCenter in Davenport, IA featuring 70+ speakers across three tracks, workshops, villages, Capture the Flag competitions, and networking for cybersecurity professionals, students, and educators. Includes a CISO Executive Summit. CornCon 12 is scheduled for October 2-3, 2026.
• The Children of The CornCon (Kids' Hacker Camp) K-12 STEM festival and hacker camp held during CornCon featuring cybersecurity activities, coding, electronics, VR, lockpicking, car hacking, cryptography, computer building, and escape rooms for children and their parents.
• High School Cybersecurity Career Day & Competition Career introduction events for high school students featuring cybersecurity career path exploration, Capture the Flag competitions, and panel discussions with cybersecurity professionals. Held in Chicago and suburbs, with 120-160 students from multiple schools per event.
• Docent/IEEE Webinar Series Cybersecurity and technology education webinars co-hosted with IEEE Computer Society, featuring expert speakers on topics including AI ethics, systemic risk, and digital citizenship.
• Capture the Flag (CTF) Competitions Cybersecurity competitions for high school and college students, including the Students vs Professionals CTF at CornCon (hosted by CyberproAI) and hosted CTF events at schools and conferences. Nine teams participated at CornCon 11 in 2025.
• Security Speakeasy Annual CISO networking and scholarship fundraiser held during RSA Conference in San Francisco, featuring appetizers, drinks, and cigars for approximately 180-200 security leaders.
• Kids' Hacker Camp Seasonal K-12 STEM camps held at EICC in Davenport, IA featuring coding, electronics, VR, escape rooms, and cybersecurity competitions with lunch included. Spring 2025 event expected 80-120 K-12 students.
• College Scholarship Program College scholarships for cybersecurity students, including partnerships with ISSA Education Foundation offering $2,000 scholarships for undergraduate or graduate studies. The program typically supports 30+ individuals, mostly students.

Named customers10 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• IEEE (Computer Society)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDocent Institute works with IEEE Computer Society on industry standards around the ethical application of technology. Dr. John D. Johnson is Chair of the IEEE Special Technology Community on Cybersecurity. The organizations co-host Docent/IEEE webinar series and Tech Talks.
• RSA ConferencecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDocent hosts the annual Security Speakeasy event at RSA Conference in San Francisco, now in its 15th year. This is a major networking and fundraising event for the organization.
• Black HatminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDocent partners with Black Hat for potential CISO dinners or social events during the conference.
• Eastern Iowa Community Colleges (EICC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEICC serves as the primary location for Kids' Hacker Camps and STEM festivals in Davenport. Docent has partnered with EICC since 2018 for coding and cybersecurity programs for kids.
• St. Ambrose UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHistorical partner for CornCon conferences and founding partner when CornCon was established in 2015 with Quad Cities Cybersecurity Alliance.
• Hawkeye Community CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDocent co-hosts 'looCon, an annual cybersecurity competition and career day for high school students at Hawkeye Community College in Waterloo, IA.
• Chicago ISSA ChaptercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Chicago ISSA Chapter for high school cybersecurity career days and events twice yearly in Chicago and suburbs.
• Pan Asian American Business Council (PAABC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Chicago-area cybersecurity career events and CISO networking activities, promoting diversity in the cybersecurity profession.
• Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEducational partner for Chicago High School Cybersecurity Career Day events.
• Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIIT Kent College of Law hosts multiple Docent events including high school career days and GCSI Conference sessions.
• ISSA Education FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDocent partners with ISSA Education Foundation to award annual scholarships ($2000) for undergraduate or graduate cybersecurity studies.
• Security Advisor AllianceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-host partnership for Chicago CISO Dinner and high school career day events.
• Quad Cities Cybersecurity AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding partner for CornCon since 2015, working together with IEEE Computer Society and St. Ambrose University to establish the Quad Cities Cybersecurity Conference.
• Global Cyber Security Initiative (GCSI)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDocent participates in GCSI Conference events at IIT Chicago Kent College of Law, including CISO dinners and booth presence.
• NetThunderminorOthersCEO Parker Schmidt visited Waseda University with Dr. Johnson. NetThunder sponsors Security Speakeasy events with bourbon tasting.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Code.org: Code.org is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing free K-12 computer science curricula, teacher training, and the annual Hour of Code. Like Docent, it pursues STEM-computing literacy for K-12 students (including underserved populations) via nonprofit donations and corporate sponsorship, positioning Code.org as a strategic sibling nonprofit operating at larger scale but the same charitable education model.
• CYBER.ORG: CYBER.ORG is a nonprofit focused on K-12 cybersecurity education, providing free curricula, teacher training, and Cyber.org cyber camps to schools nationwide. Like Docent Institute, it serves the same mission of building the K-12-to-cyber-career pipeline and operates similar camp and educator-partnership models, making it the most directly comparable US-based cyber-EdTech nonprofit.
• National Cyber League (NCL): The National Cyber League runs seasonal CTF-style competitions for high school and college students across the US. Docent's 'looCon CTF and Students-vs-Professionals CTF at CornCon directly overlap with NCL's player-vs-platform competition format; both target the same student persona and share cybersecurity-skill-building as a primary outcome.
• Per Scholas: Per Scholas is a nonprofit that provides free tuition tech training (including cybersecurity tracks) to adults from underserved communities, connecting them with employer hiring partners. Docent Institute's mission of serving K-12 students from underserved communities and feeding the cybersecurity talent pipeline is structurally analogous; both use enterprise partnerships (Morningstar, Microsoft, John Deere for Docent; corporate hiring partners for Per Scholas) as a sustainability engine.
• NPower: NPower is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit offering free IT and cybersecurity training plus job placement for veterans, young adults, and underrepresented groups. Its "talent pipeline" model — free training plus employer-hire network — mirrors Docent's cybersecurity camps plus scholarship plus CISO-mentor approach, and it competes for the same donor dollars within the cyber-workforce nonprofit space.

Broad incumbents

• (ISC)²: (ISC)² is the global nonprofit certifying body for CISSP and other cybersecurity credentials, with a large membership, official training partners, and the Center for Cyber Safety and Education (which runs K-8 cyber-safety programs). The (ISC)² education arm is a high-relevance broad incumbent in Docent's space, and the Docent/ISSA Education Foundation $2,000 scholarship connection hints at the existing network through which (ISC)² operates similar K-12 and student pathways.
• Year Up: Year Up is a workforce-development nonprofit providing six-month tech (including cybersecurity) training plus corporate internships to young adults from underserved communities. Its employer-integration model mirrors Docent's CISO-mentor and internship pipeline, and both compete for similar foundation and Fortune-500 funding; Year Up is the established incumbent benchmark for the underserved-tech-talent-pipeline model Docent runs at smaller scale.
• SANS Institute: SANS Institute is the largest commercial provider of cybersecurity training, certifications, and the GIAC credential, with a global training footprint and industry-leading NetWars CTF platform. While SANS is a for-profit incumbent and Docent is a nonprofit, both operate in the same cybersecurity education category and SANS's reach and GIAC brand are credible benchmarks against which Docent's smaller-scale free programming competes for talent mind share.
• Cybrary: Cybrary is an online cybersecurity training platform offering free and paid courses, hands-on labs, and career paths aligned to certifications. Docent complements rather than competes with Cybrary, but both serve the same learner persona — career-changers and students entering cybersecurity — making Cybrary a relevant broad incumbent and potential curriculum-distribution channel partner.
• Girl Scouts of the USA - STEM Programs: Girl Scouts of the USA runs national STEM badges and cybersecurity-focused programs (including the "Cybersecurity" and "Code" badge series) for K-12 girls nationwide. While broader than Docent, it overlaps meaningfully on STEM-education-for-underserved-girls and pursues the same donor and corporate-sponsor funding pool; its nationwide scale is a model for how Docent's Cyber/STEM mission could scale beyond its Midwestern regional footprint.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/DocentInstitute
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/docent-institute

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Docent Institute