Lightspeed, Eagle Integrate Student Information Management with School Network Security

• By Dian Schaffhauser
• 12/08/08

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Lightspeed Systems, which develops network security software for the education market, and Eagle Software, which develops Web-based administrative software for California schools, have integrated their products to enable schools to better monitor online user activity and support student safety measures. As a result, the Aeries Student Information System from Eagle Software features reports of students' Internet usage that are obtained from Total Traffic Control, Lightspeed's network security and monitoring solution.

The first deployment of the integrated solution will take place in El Dorado County Office of Education (EDCOE) member districts. About 90 percent of the districts in the county will use Aeries with Total Traffic Control. The EDCOE provides student information system support and Lightspeed's Total Traffic Control filtering for all the districts in the county.

With the Aeries and Total Traffic Control integration, the student information system interface includes an additional screen that provides reports on an individual student's Internet activities and suspicious search-engine queries, such as terms related to bomb making, gang involvement, and suicide. The companies believe that by monitoring and analyzing student behavior on the Internet, school personnel can detect early warning signs of potential threats to student safety, document acceptable-use-policy violations, and resolve inappropriate online activity.

"We want to help administrators get the information they need to protect students online and take appropriate action," said Scott Garrison, president of Lightspeed. "We are working collaboratively with Eagle Software to incorporate our critical information on student online activity with schools' central access point for student data."

"To our knowledge, this is the first time that network monitoring tools have been integrated into a K-12 student information system," said Camden Iliff, director of student systems development for Eagle Software.