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E-Rate Funding Update:Effective Funding Year 2012Beginning in Funding Year 2012, schools receiving E-Rate funding for Internet Access or Internal Connections must verify that they have updated their Internet safety policy to include provisions for educating minors about appropriate online behavior, including interactions with other people on social networking sites and cyberbullying awareness and response. This is an amendment to the Communications Act of 1934. PublicSchoolWORKSNEW CIPA CoursesPublicSchoolWORKS, a Cincinnati-based company that offers the one and only comprehensive, fully-automated risk management system available for schools, is helping districts fulfill the new 2012 CIPA requirements by offering a series of courses designed specifically for teachers and students. There are four grade-appropriate courses for students, in addition to staff courses, that help schools receiving E-Rate funding meet this new training requirement. PublicSchoolWORKS’ CIPA courses include:
In addition to the PublicSchoolWORKS’ CIPA courses, students and parents will have access to the Student Bullying Reporting System, a 24/7 hotline and anonymous reporting system that allows for the reporting of harmful behavior in a non-threatening environment. It immediately notifies principals of behaviors or threats so that they can intervene before a situation escalates. The CIPA Parent InfoCenter center provides supportive information that allows parents to gain awareness of internet dangers and the steps needed to keep their children safe. To learn more about PSW’s CIPA courses, email sales@publicschoolworks.com or visit the CIPA website. SPOTLIGHTCyberbullying LegislationA recent article on the Middletown Journal news site in Ohio discusses the Jessica Logan Act, H.B. 116, which was signed into law in January 2012. The law requires schools to update their antibullying policies by November 2012. According to the article, these updates must reflect changes in new language addressing so-called cyberbullying, in which harassment or intimidation is achieved using a cellphone, home computer or other electronic device. In addition, the new law gives districts the authority to suspend students who commit acts of cyberbullying off of school grounds. Huber Heights Assistant Superintendent, Sue Gunnell, stresses in the article the importance of educating students about the appropriate use and expectations of technology while Holly Reedy, attorney for the Ohio School Boards Association, points out the limitations schools face in preventing this issue on a daily basis. SPOTLIGHTBullyingAt Brunswick High School’s James J. Hayas Performing Arts Center in Brunswick, OH, consultant and former teacher Michael A. Douglas hosted a forum to discuss the issue of teen bullying. The forum, which took place on February 2, 2012 was followed by the play “I Have a Secret” performed by members of the North Canton Playhouse. The performance depicted how four different students dealt with a variety of types of abuse from fellow students. In the play’s tragic end, one of the students committed suicide, an issue which has received a great deal of media attention. In a recent article on Cleaveland.com, Brunswick City Schools’ Assistant Superintendent, Joelle Magyar, herself a victim of bullying in school, commented on the forum stating that she hopes events such as the one held at James J. Hayas Performing Arts Center will lead to a safer and more secure environment for students. 
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