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Groton schools to use $191,030 state grant to boost cybersecurity
Summary
The Board of Education will receive $191,030 from the Department of Emergency Services & Public Protection to fund device protection, multi‑factor authentication and SOC monitoring for school IT; staff called it a bridge until statewide services are available.
Clint Kennedy, the district’s technology lead, summarized a $191,030 grant from the Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection the Board of Education plans to accept. Kennedy said the funds will support device protection for individual devices, multi‑factor authentication, and a security‑operations‑center (SOC) service to provide ongoing threat monitoring.
Kennedy described the award as a bridge: the town will use the grant to bring enhanced security protections online now, with the expectation that state‑level services or bulk purchasing may later provide these services more widely. There is a required match identified in the upcoming operating budget and the grant must be expended by November 2028; Kennedy said the district will sequence spending after the budget cycle is finalized.
The council approved acceptance and referral of the grant 7–0–0.
Why this matters: Cybersecurity protects student and staff data and continuity of services; the grant will fund monitoring and protective services that staff said would otherwise be expensive to deliver at district scale.
