FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
October 23, 2008
CONTACT:
Lisa McVey, Communications & Community Relations Liaison, 610-869-2441, ext. 1019
AVON GROVE SCHOOL DISTRICT TO HOST
“CYBER SMARTS” PARENT INFORMATION NIGHT ON NOV. 17
Nationally known speaker Katie Koestner to present.
West Grove, PA — Avon Grove School District will host a “Cyber Smarts” parent information night on Monday, Nov. 17, 2008, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Avon Grove High School auditorium. The school is located at 257 State Road in West Grove.
Nationally known speaker Katie Koestner of Campus Outreach Services in St. Davids, Pa., will provide a crash course on what parents needs to know about the Internet, online safety, and other communications technologies popular among youngsters. The Cyber Smarts program is designed to help parents better understand how their children are using technology, and to enable parents to better protect children from potential dangers. Parents/guardians of students of all ages are encouraged to attend this meeting.
Please note: The Cyber Smarts parent program is designed for adults and is not open to students.
According to Koestner, popular technologies have revolutionized youth social scenes in ways we are only beginning to understand, and, unfortunately, many parents have been left behind and are unaware of the dangers created by these new tools.
Koestner is a recognized national expert on teen relationships and current risk issues for schools. She has extensive knowledge in the field of Internet safety, having gleaned her insights from research, experience, and “insider” information from teens, as well as from partnerships with various technology institutions and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
She has been featured on the cover of TIME Magazine, The Oprah Winfrey Show, NBC Nightly News, Larry King Live, Good Morning America, MTV, and dozens of other national news programs. HBO and Lifetime Television have made films about her life. In 2003, she completed two films with award-winning Top Hat Productions titled “Please Write Back: Sexual Assault among America’s Students” and “Helping a Sexual Assault Survivor.”
Campus Outreach Services conducted in-school assemblies for students at Avon Grove High School last school year. Students from Fred S. Engle Middle School attended small group information sessions last January. Topics covered in the school assemblies included online safety, practical advice on safe and smart ways to use technology, as well as real-life anecdotes that drove home the lesson that technology needs to be used wisely to avoid dangers and unforeseen, negative repercussions.
A number of Avon Grove administrators, faculty, and staff were also trained on developing comprehensive Internet acceptable use policies, related disciplinary response techniques, and general education around policies, boundary setting, and other technology-related issues pertinent to the school setting. Koestner, who founded Campus Outreach Services, conducted the staff training through a series of Webinars and in-person sessions.
Ninth- and tenth-grade students at Avon Grove High School are scheduled to attend an in-school assembly on cyber safety during the day on Nov. 17. Seventh -graders at Fred S. Engle Middle School will attend information sessions in January 2009, and sixth-graders at Avon Grove Intermediate School will participate in cyber safety training in the spring.
Katie Koestner Biography
###
Posted:
Tuesday, March 16, 2010 10:04 AM
