Policy on school equipment lost or stolen outside of school

One of my least favorite, but probably most important, parts of my job involves working on technology security policies and procedures.

I see the possibility of school equipment, especially laptops, being lost or stolen as increasingly probable and problematic for both our department and principals here in our district. About half our teachers are now choosing laptops  rather than desktops when getting new computers. We currently have one teacher whose computer was stolen from her home months ago and refuses to pay for it or make a claim on her home owners insurance. We've been lucky that this does not happen more often.

I am recommending a board policy that addresses the issue of responsibility for school equipment used outside of school, and that teachers who get laptop computers are informed in writing about the policy and alerted to the data security issues involved with lost or stolen computers as well. Beginning next year with our new student information system, all grades and gradebook data will be housed on the server, not on the computer itself - thank goodness.

Our current security guide (from 2004) for teachers is here: http://www.isd77.org/school305/FCK/File/Securityteachers.pdf

Below is the information I received from other districts in MN about how they handle equipment that may be lost, stolen or damaged when used outside of school from a query I sent to the MEMO TechSID listserv.

I am still interested in seeing other districts' policies on this if you have them. Thanks!

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...we have never had an incident and we have no board accepted policy. What we have told people is that if the equipment is damaged or stolen, they will need to turn in a home owners claim in order to reimburse the school. I am not sure if that will actually work, but that's what we do...

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[our school] has procedures in place covering laptop computers. It is not board approved policy but would be considered “administrative procedure” that has been adopted by the District Technology Committee, the District Leadership Team and the Cabinet. There are two forms. The first outlines specific procedures that are essentially extensions of the board approved “acceptable use policy” so that users know that those policies are still in effect on laptop computers away from the school network. The second is a sign-off that the user is responsible for damage and needs to return it at any time as it is asked for. The specific line that most applies to your question states: “I understand that if loss or damage occurs to this equipment while in my possession, I will be responsible for replacement\repair cost of the equipment.”

We’ve had some folks question it and even one who refused to sign it – and didn’t get a laptop to take home. However, it has never been challenged (to my knowledge) beyond that.

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1. our board knows that teachers, in some cases, have a school district laptop to use at school and at home. They approved the budget request which explicitly stated, "laptop". NO board adopted policy.
2. the teacher signs off that they have RECEIVED a school district laptop to use. We discuss that loss of the laptop on the way from school, at home, or on the way to school, as in stolen, means the teacher or their insurance company pays for the current replacement value. Purchase date and price are in school's database (PO#, etc.) Our district loss insurance has a deductible that is far too large to even qualify any computer for coverage (i.e., loss). If lost/stolen, the computer may or may not be replaced to the teacher without some quid-pro-quo considerations as noted. Teachers should notify their insurance company and have some coverage in that manner.
3. all kinds of companies provide their employees with laptops and they too suffer the problem of possible loss--and it can be a new computer to one that is several years old. The lost computer situation varies by company (widely).
4. more of the question is: what about the DATA on the laptop?? Our teachers use a gradebook that is resident on the school's server--they log into our server from school or home. So, no problem with that provided that the ID/PW is not automated on the laptop for the logged-in user. Our laptops have user ID/pw for use out of the school, but that does not mean they could not be hacked into by use of a CD with appropriate system software on it.
5. Teachers keep volumes of data on the computer (tests, handouts, memos) which are a problem IF not backed up in our teacher server account and the computer is lost. Teachers have some personal obligations to back-up their personal data on their computer to another hard-drive or jump-drive(RAM disk) to forestall possible loss.
6. Life is an inherent risk; having, using, and possibly losing a computer are additional risks that need to be taken. Managing the risk is a shared responsibility of teacher and provider (district).

Image accompanying this post from: www.arbiteronline.com/news/2006/11/06/BizTech/

Comments

[Spyware Blockers]

I have been reading your posts lately, just want to say thanks for all informative stuff i have found here, helped me learn alot lately.

Much Regards, Mark

[AARON]

Well, I haven't heard of this until now - much appreciated.

[AARON]

Well, I haven't heard of this until now - much appreciated.