LAWFUEL –
~ Challenge encourages school principals to sign up for CyberSafety
presentations ~
TALLAHASSEE, FL – Attorney General Bill McCollum and Education
Commissioner Eric J. Smith today announced a statewide CyberSafety
challenge to school principals to sign their schools up for the Attorney
General’s CyberSafety Education presentations. The challenge is part of
Attorney General McCollum’s goal to reach every middle and high school in
the state with his CyberSafety presentation.
“One of the most important lessons we can teach our young people this
year is how to protect themselves from internet child predators,” said
Attorney General McCollum. “By challenging our principals to sign up their
students to receive CyberSafety Education presentations before the school
year ends, we hope to ensure as many children as possible have the tools
they need to stay safe online. I appreciate Education Commissioner Smith
joining with me on this important issue.”
Two challenge winners will be announced in May – the district that
signs up the largest total number of schools for presentations and the
district that signs up the highest percentage of its schools for
presentations. The winning districts will receive special CyberSafety
presentations hosted in person by Attorney General McCollum and
Commissioner Smith next fall.
“Nothing is more important than student safety,” said Education
Commissioner Eric J. Smith. “We must strive to do all that we can to equip
our children with the knowledge they need to protect themselves as they
explore the many benefits the Internet has to offer.”
The CyberSafety program, developed by Attorney General McCollum for
middle and high school students, combines real-life stories and examples
to help students identify ways they could be victimized by internet
predators. Members of the Attorney General’s Child Predator CyberCrime
Unit have been bringing the 50-minute CyberSafety program students
statewide since the beginning of the school year.
“”This is an excellent opportunity for a partnership between the
Attorney General’s office and the Florida public school system to help
ensure the safety and welfare of all students,” said Bill Montford, CEO of
the Florida School District Superintendents Association, an organization
which has endorsed the CyberSafety initiative and has committed to helping
ensure all districts participate in the CyberSafety Challenge. “Schools
throughout Florida will eagerly accept this challenge and opportunity to
help raise awareness of the need to take every step to ensure the
protection of Florida’s youngest and most vulnerable.”
Principals can visit http://www.safeflorida.net/safeschools to log
into a site developed specifically to register schools to receive the
Attorney General’s CyberSafety presentation, and then sign up for
presentations at a time that works with their schedules. The presentations
are available to schools as well as parent groups. Since the beginning of
the school year, more than 70 schools have received presentations to more
than 24,000 students.
More information on the Attorney General’s CyberSafety initiative is
available online at http://www.safeflorida.net/safeschools. The
CyberSafety Challenge logo is attached below.
