Two Cranston students were honored on Wednesday for their knowledge and skills put to the test in the annual Rhode Island Cyber Foundations Contest.

Jeffrey Tipton, a senior at Cranston High School East, finished second overall in the competition and Tajah Mccain, a senior at the Cranston Area Career and Technical Center, was the top finisher at his school. Both were given awards at a ceremony at the New England Institute of Technology Center in East Greenwich.

The competition quizzes students in three categories important in the field of cyber security: operating systems, system administration and networking. More than 200 students signed up for the contest — twice as many as last year.

The contest was launched last year as part of an effort by Congressman Jim Langevin to bring attention to cyberspace threats and promote the training of a workforce that can work in the cybersecurity field.

“With the increasing realization of the economic damage being done to the government and private sector because of weak network security, the cyber industry is poised for tremendous growth, resulting in abundant new job opportunities,” said Langevin, who co-founded the Congressional Cybersecurity Caucus. “Engaging our students through initiatives like this contest will help us build a workforce in Rhode Island capable of meeting these demands and make our state a magnet for this quickly expanding industry.”

The full list of winners:

Exeter West Greenwich High School- Adam Sowden (1st place overall) – Class of 2014
Cranston High School East- Jeffrey Tipton (2nd place overall) – Class of 2012
Cranston Area Career and Technical Center- Tajah Mccain – Class of 2012
East Providence High School- Jessica Cook – Class of 2012
Warwick Area Career and Technical Center- Timothy Gelinas (3rd place overall) – Class of 2012
Smithfield High School- Anthony Dyer – Class of 2012
The Regional Career Center at Coventry High School- Joseph Millette – Class of 2012
Woonsocket Area Career and Technical Center- Ryan Nason – Class of 2012
Rocky Hill High School- Tingying Su – Class of 2012

The top finishers received engraved awards and the state champion was given a $250 gift card.