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Montville district to implement Gaggle monitoring tool; reports drop in HIB and other incidents
Summary
The district will roll out Gaggle monitoring for school accounts; administrators reported 17 incidents districtwide from Sept. 1 to Dec. 1, a decline from the prior year, and outlined how the tool and existing procedures will be used.
The Montville Township School District announced it will implement Gaggle, a student-safety monitoring platform for school-managed accounts, and summarized discipline and harassment statistics for the first half of the 2024 school year.
Superintendent Tom said the district will deploy the Gaggle Safety Management solution for Google Workspace for Education to monitor student activity on school accounts and flag concerning behaviors for review by trained staff. "Gaggle combines advanced machine learning with the expertise of trained staff professionals to continuously monitor and review students' digital activity," the superintendent said. He added that if a flagged matter appears life-threatening after hours, the district will notify the police.
The superintendent also presented incidence data for Sept. 1 to Dec. 1, 2024: the district reported 17 total incidents across seven schools, down eight from the prior-year period; four violent incidents at the high school; one case of vandalism; one substance-abuse incident at the high school; zero weapons offenses; 11 confirmed HIB (Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying) incidents districtwide (down three from the prior year); 11 incidents that resulted in removal or suspension (same as prior year); and 10 alleged HIB incidents not confirmed (down 25 from the prior year).
"This technology will help us proactively monitor student activities on school accounts, assuring they're using these tools safely and appropriately," the superintendent said, adding the district views the measure as part of broader safety supports for students.
Board members said they are monitoring implementation and that counselors and administrators are being briefed. No formal policy vote on Gaggle was recorded during the meeting; the superintendent said communications to parents would be issued about the implementation.
Ending: The district will publish parent communications about the Gaggle implementation and continue to update the community on safety and discipline metrics.
