First Steps to Improve Your School’s Cybersecurity Posture

The REMS TA Center explores immediate action steps core planning teams can take to protect their school from cyberattacks. Selected interview snippets from subject matter experts Ray Girdler (Arkansas Department of Education), Julia Fallon (State Educational Technology Directors Association), and Doug Levin (K12 Security Information eXchange) provide deeper insights into this topic. This episode answers the following questions: 

• What baseline cyber protections should schools implement if they don’t know where to start? 
• How can schools avoid getting bogged down in technical jargon? 
• Why is an audit important for improving cybersecurity? 
• How can self-assessments support cyber protection measures? 
• What role does information-sharing play in helping schools improve their cybersecurity posture? 

Transcript

REMS TA Center Resources 

Cybersecurity Considerations for K-12 Schools and School Districts (Online Course)  

Cybersecurity for K-12 Schools and School Districts: Developing a Cyber Annex (Fact Sheet)  

Cybersecurity Preparedness for Schools and Institutions of Higher Education (Web Page) 

Emergency Exercises Training Package (Training Package) 

School EOPs In-Depth: Developing a COOP Annex (Online Course) 

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