Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA)
School Board Approved on May 14, 2018
Introduction
It is the policy of Mulvane USD 263 to:
- Prevent user access over its computer network to, or transmission of, inappropriate materials via Internet, electronic mail, or other forms of direct electronic communications;
- Prevent unauthorized access and other unlawful online activity;
- Prevent unauthorized online disclosure, use, or dissemination of personal identification information of minors;
- Comply with the Children’s Internet Protection Act. [Pub. L. No. 106-554 and 47 USC 254(h)]
Access to Inappropriate Materials
To the extent practical, technology protection measures (or Internet filters) shall be used to block or filter Internet, or other forms of electronic communications, and access to inappropriate information.
Specifically, as required by the Children’s Internet Protection Act, blocking shall be applied to visual depictions of materials deemed obscene or child pornography, or to any material deemed harmful to minors.
Subject to staff supervision, technology protection measures may be minimized only for bona fide research or other lawful purposes.
Inappropriate Network Usage
To the extent practical, steps shall be taken to promote the safety and security of users of Mulvane USD 263’s online computer network when using electronic mail, chat rooms, instant messaging, and other forms of direct electronic communications.
Specifically, as required by the Children’s Internet Protection Act, prevention of inappropriate network usage includes:
- Unauthorized access, including so-called “hacking” and other unlawful activities;
- Unauthorized disclosure, use, and dissemination of personal identification information regarding minors.
Education, Supervision, and Monitoring
It shall be the responsibility of all members of Mulvane USD 263 staff to educate, supervise, and monitor appropriate usage of online computer network and access to the Internet in accordance with this policy, the Children’s Internet Protection Act, and the Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act.
All students will be educated about appropriate online behavior, including interacting with other individuals on social networking websites and in chat rooms, and cyber bullying awareness and response.
Procedures for disabling or otherwise modifying any technology protection measure shall be the responsibility of the district Technology Director or designee.
Technology Filtering
Mulvane USD 263 feels that Internet filtering is a very important responsibility therefore; we have contracted with Twotrees and Securly to use their services on and off district campuses while district employees, parents, and students are using district managed credentials to access Internet content.
These technologies utilize state of the art filtering techniques. They sit between the Internet access point and the network to keep students and staff sheltered from that part of the Internet that most people agree is inappropriate in an educational environment. This technology filtering bars access to obscene, pornographic, and other inappropriate materials as mandated by the Children’s Internet Protection Act. Filtering, logging, and monitoring features offer our school district complete control of our environment with flexible tools to control the level of access and intervention we choose.
Every site that is visited by any workstation is logged and permanently stored for the protection and use of the district in evaluating Internet use, the volume of traffic moving across the network and access points, where abuse tends to be.
These reactive filters review access logs to determine electronically whether accessed sites meet filtering requirements.
These technologies are combined with security and management systems to help keep school administrators in touch with Internet usage through live online data about each workstation and user under their charge.
Adoption
This Internet Safety Policy was adopted by the USD 263 School Board of Mulvane USD 263 at a public meeting, following normal public notice, on May 14, 2018.
