Posted: November 7, 2011 Middle School assemblies address cyberbullying through the lens of student safety High School Principal John Rickert speaks to Van Antwerp 6th grade students on Monday, Nov. 8. Van Antwerp Middle School Principal Luke Rakoczy and High School Principal John Rickert made two things clear to VA sixth graders at an assembly on Tuesday: First, Internet and social media postings can have serious and lasting consequences, and second, school staff members are deeply committed to student safety and want to help if something is wrong. Amid recent YouTube video postings that caused concern at Niskayuna High School, middle school and high school principals are holding grade level assemblies at both Van Antwerp and Iroqouis on Monday and Tuesday, Nov. 7 and 8. The goal of the assemblies is to provide students with accurate information about the situation at the High School; to let them know their schools are safe; and to remind them that postings on the Internet and social media sites can cause harm to their classmates, the school environment, and carry serious disciplinary consequences. On Monday, Mr. Rickert gave Van Antwerp students accurate information regarding the YouTube video case. The Niskayuna Police Department is working closely with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to determine the source of the videos, he said. The videos have been taken off the YouTube site, and the account used to post them has been terminated, Rickert said. “Cyberbullying is a crime,” he said. “Especially if you post something that threatens student safety – that’s a crime.” Mr. Rickert noted that students would face school consequences for any Internet posts that threaten or bully another student when they disrupt the school atmosphere. “I’m sure it won’t apply to any of you in your school experience, but it’s important for you to know,” he said. “If there is a connection to school in any way, a student would still be disciplined. Clearly this has disrupted our building. Even if you are not at school – even if you’re in California and you post something (inappropriate) you could still get in a lot of trouble for doing that.” High School Assistant Principal Mark Treanor spoke to Van Antwerp 7th and 8th grade students on Tuesday. Mr. Rickert and Iroquois Principal Victoria Wyld are scheduled to address all grade levels there on Tuesday. In addition, district officials are planning to schedule a cyberbullying information/awareness evening for students and parents. Mr. Rickert and Mr. Rakoczy emphasized that even when students believe they have removed something that they previously posted on the Internet, it is almost always archived and traceable. Mr. Rickert told VA 6th graders that Niskayuna High School is a safe school and that students there have been safe at all times during recent events. However, he said, that several rumors, many of which students communicated to one another on Facebook, helped create an environment where students were concerned that something would happen at the school. He asked students to be careful how they use sites like Facebook and to not post information that may cause harm or fear. “Facebook can be the best thing in the world or it can be the worse thing in the world,” Mr. Rickert said. “It can be used to spread a lot of good news and information, or it can spread a lot of things that don’t help you. This situation has been a good lesson to all of us to be careful how we use computers and technology.” Mr. Rickert and Mr. Rakoczy took several questions from students. Students asked about how computer use is tracked, the impact of this situation on the high school in general, and if they should delete their own Facebook or YouTube accounts if they have them. The principals emphasized that that the most important thing was for students to make sure their parents were aware of their social media activity. They were also asked if there had ever been a situation at Van Antwerp like what has taken place involving the High School. Mr. Rakoczy said while the school has addressed instances of computer misconduct and cyberbullying, it has not experienced anything that approaches the level of concern that the High School has experience in recent days. “Part of the intent of these assemblies is to make sure we never do,” he said.