Cadet Nicholas A. DiNonno, recipient of the IWP Award for Excellence in Cyber Statecraft, with Captain Dean Lane, IWP CIOOn May 21st, 2026, IWP, represented by Captain M. Dean Lane, presented its Award for Excellence in Cyber Statecraft to graduating Cadet Nicholas A. DiNonno during the Superintendent’s Award Convocation at the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Nicholas is a native of Virginia Beach, Virginia, and was in the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets before coming to West Point. As the Captain of the 4th Regiment, 1st Battalion, Nicholas’ area of study while at West Point was Cyber Science and Mandarin, with a concentration in Cybersecurity.
Nicholas was quite active throughout his four years at West Point, participating in extracurricular activities, including the Cyber Policy Team and the Cadet Competitive Cyber Team.
Nicholas’ plan for the immediate future is to attend the Basic Officer Leader Course, which is a training program designed to prepare commissioned officers for service in the United States Army. This course helps officers develop the skills necessary for effective leadership and successful mission execution and, in Nicholas’ case, will prepare him to become a 17D Cyber Capability Development Officer.
A 17 D Cyber Capability Development Officer is a U.S. Army officer responsible for designing, developing, and integrating software and hardware solutions to support cyberspace operations and electromagnetic warfare missions.
Captain Lane is the CIO and SVP of Cyber Intelligence for The Institute of World Politics.