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Administrators outline K–12 online‑safety lessons after parent speakers urge formal curriculum adoption
Summary
District staff described existing online‑safety instruction embedded across grades K–12 and announced scheduled assemblies and staff training; public commenters — including parents and a district teacher — urged adoption of a consistent, assessed curriculum and clearer family communications.
Assistant administrators reported an existing progression of online‑safety and digital citizenship instruction across the district and outlined additional training and assemblies scheduled for April.
Doctor Danette presented the district’s current approach: age‑appropriate lessons in library time for K–3; counselor and technology lessons in grades 4–5 that include role‑playing, password protection and phishing awareness; STEAM course instruction in grades 6–8; and an elective Internet safety course available at the high school. Administrators also said they are scheduling staff sessions with the FBI and an April community presentation on Internet safety, and that the district is pursuing a partnership with the Children’s Advocacy Center of Franklin County for additional prevention education.
Public commenters pressed for a unified, written curriculum and clearer parent communications. Tricia McCheskey, a parent and the mother of two district students, described how a bracelet marketed with religious content contained a QR link that opened content on TikTok, arguing that children and parents need explicit, taught instruction about digital risks; she urged the board to “choose and implement an actual curriculum.” Another parent and district teacher, Amanda Kirkpatrick, cited new Common Sense Media research on early device ownership and gaming and asked how the district assesses student learning from online‑safety lessons and whether parents receive lesson summaries.
Administrators responded that some lessons are short (five to ten lessons in elementary specials; about 20–30 STEAM class sessions at middle school) and that counseling and technology programs repeat core themes. They said the district could explore adding course time or embedding additional lessons if the board prioritizes that approach and asked for time to map lessons to a formal curriculum and to develop family‑facing materials.
Board members asked staff to return with more detail on lesson content, assessments and parent communications so the board can consider whether to adopt a single, districtwide online‑safety curriculum and how to resource that work.
