All students new to the laptop/Chromebook program will be issued a laptop or Chromebook as part of the registration process after a parent meeting is conducted and proper parent and student signatures are provided. The laptop/Chromebook will be assigned in the same manner as a textbook. The serial number of the laptop/Chromebook will be recorded. Once the laptop/Chromebook is issued to a student, it will stay with the student for the remainder of the school year, or until the student withdraws from school. Students will be reassigned their original laptop/Chromebook each year while enrolled in Wilkes County Schools. Students are responsible for bringing the laptops/Chromebooks to school, taking them home each day, and charging them for use the next day. The laptops/Chromebooks are not to be left unsupervised at school or at home in unsecured locations.
There should be no expectation of privacy regarding the contents of computer files or communication using any school owned computer or network. Wilkes County Schools reserves the right to investigate, review, monitor, and restrict information stored on or transmitted via Wilkes County Schools’ equipment. Parents, guardians, and students do not have the right or expectation of privacy for any use of school owned laptops, Chromebooks, computers, or other equipment.
School or district administrators or members of the Technology Department may conduct an individual search of the laptop,Chromebook, files, music, videos, emails or other related items. The district will cooperate fully with local, state, or federal officials in investigations of suspected illegal activities conducted through district owned computer systems.
Gaggle has a specially trained, dedicated team to monitor student accounts. All email, blog posts, digital locker files, instant messages, and other communications are passed through Gaggle’s standard filtering lists. Any content that gets blocked by the filters is re-routed to Gaggle’s HMS team. If the activity was the result of inappropriate behavior, a Gaggle Cyber Security Agent will initiate an internal User Violation Report (UVR). Management of blocked communication is based upon the best-practices of Gaggle districts' discipline and escalation policies. Messages will be regularly monitored during the Standard Monitoring Coverage Period. Any blocked messages received outside of that period will be reviewed during the next scheduled Monitoring Coverage Period.