May 6: Manitoulin Secondary presents parent workshop on Internet safety

A free Internet Safety Workshop for Parents will be presented at Manitoulin Secondary School on Monday, May 6, 2013 from 7 pm to 8:30 pm. Internet Safety Expert Steve Chapelle will focus on user account security, Internet content control, social networking, file sharing and cyberbullying. A Parent’s Handbook will be distributed to all workshop participants.

“Our School Council identified Internet safety as a key concern. We are delighted that our School Council is sponsoring this essential workshop for parents with the support of a Parents Reaching Out grant from the Ministry of Education,” said Manitoulin Secondary School Principal Laurie Zahnow. “Parents will learn how to protect their children and their family computers from Internet threats.”

Steve Chapelle will show parents how to maintain control of their computers by setting proper security measures. Parents will learn how to configure accounts and how to use available controls for managing each stage of their children’s Internet activities. They will also learn about security settings and safe behaviour for Facebook, Messenger, Skype and Twitter.

The risks associated with the unrestricted sharing of copyrighted material and inappropriate files will be covered during the presentation. Parents will also learn how to protect their children against cyberbullying, including appropriate responses to harassment online.

Steve Chapelle has held management and analyst positions in the information services sector for more than 25 years, from corporate environments to the home office. He has experience with Microsoft, IBM, Apple and Novell operating systems.

The father of two school-age children, Chapelle has been providing Internet safety training to southern Ontario schools since 2006. He has been featured on CBC Radio One by parenting columnist Karen Horsman and has provided information security training for the Court Reporters’ Association of Ontario and the Certified General Accountants of Ontario.

In addition to the evening presentation on May 6th, Steve Chapelle will speak to students at Central Manitoulin Public School and Lakeview Public School in the morning and students at Manitoulin Secondary School in the afternoon.

The evening presentation will be held in the school cafeteria. Free childcare will be available and everyone is welcome. Manitoulin Secondary School is located at 107 Bay Street in M’Chigeeng.

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Media Contact:

Laurie Zahnow, Principal, Manitoulin Secondary School,
Rainbow District School Board, 705-368-7000.