On Tuesday, Nov. 29 at the Colleton County School Board during the Superintendent’s Operational Update included Information Technology from Angela McAdoo.
On Tuesday, Dec. 13 the CCSD board meeting was held in the PAC (Performing Arts Center) at CCHS (Colleton County High School).
Information Technology Report
On Tuesday, Nov. 29 Colleton County School District staff personnel Angela McAdoo delivered the Technology Report to the school board and community in attendance regarding district-wide technological programming.
In a report, McAdoo explained that during the planning phase for rolling out a “Multi-factor Authentication” (2FA) system throughout the district they ran into some challenges. It was indicated that many of the schools do not have a reliable signal due to the rural area that the schools are in. As a result, staff members are receiving a second prompt for logging in.
McAdoo and her team engineered a solution that will allow them to create a “Safe Haven.” This “safe haven” will bypass the multi-factor authentication step staff are on-site at each of the district-owned properties. However, if any staff member attempts to access district resources off campus, they will be prompted for a second authentication factor.
McAdoo shared that after a discussion with her executive cabinet, it was decided to move to a new and improved help desk and asset management solution. The new solution allows the ability to monitor SLA metrics, which determines how long it takes to respond to and close tickets. It also monitors response times to these actions. The program also gives better visibility into the equipment and work orders for the district.
Currently, the district operates on two different platforms. One platform is used to track assets and an additional platform is where tickets are housed. The new system will also improve reporting capabilities. Additionally, there will be cost savings of approximately $15,000 by consolidating the separate platforms into one by comparison to the current multiple platform systems in place. McAdoo and her team plan to embark on this new system as a joint effort with buildings and grounds so that when work orders need to be submitted, everything will go through the same system.
McAdoo and her team are also looking at a partnership with the South Carolina
Critical Infrastructure Cyber Security Program (SC CIC). This program will offer Phish testing and vulnerability scans monthly, along with incident response when needed. The application process for this program has been started and it is a free opportunity for the district.
McAdoo said that they are also partnering with the Department of Education
to get access to the “Nessus Professional” on-premises network vulnerability scanning program. This program is free, with no cost to be used for one month. It is a program that scans and tracks vulnerabilities. Reports are sent to their CISO (chief information security officer) to be viewed and then reports of their findings will be sent back.
McAdoo described the partnership with the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce in the works in order to get the team certified in security. This program has a $5,000 value for each person, which will be free for our district through the SC CompTIA IWT Scholarship. There are eight employees are slated for certification.
Additionally, the department is also in the middle of performing a security audit on the environment. The results of the audit will help establish a baseline of where the district is with cyber security and insurance readiness. It will also give a better picture of which direction needs to be taken to improve and get the district in a more secure position. This step will also help the district in obtaining cyber insurance.
Upon the conclusion of the presentation, school board member Sharon Witkin asked if the cost of the security audit was a budgeted item. McAdoo said it was not a budgeted item. Witkins asked district office personnel, Ramona Barrett, if the cost of the audit would be put under procurement in order to put out a bid for auditors and then come before the board. McAdoo stated that they worked with the chief procurement director and assured the board that everything fell within the guidelines. Barrett and Witkin then discussed a few details that were then determined would be covered in the finance report.
School board member Lynn Stroble also inquired about the district website and communications. It was discussed that currently, the district website is not very user-friendly in terms of locating information relevant to school board meetings and times, and Stroble wanted to share that so it can be remedied.
*UPDATE: On Tuesday, Dec. 13 the CCSD board meeting was held in the PAC (Performing Arts Center) at CCHS (Colleton County High School). Due to raised concerns, CCSD office personnel, Ramona Barrett gave clarification from the finance department that data of the district such as employee social security numbers, bank information, and district bank accounts was not subject to the cyber-attack. All the data for district employees is secure.
CCSD personnel Ellen Fitch responded regarding the work order system that the district currently uses. She indicated that the technology department currently uses multiple platforms throughout the district to manage several operations, but the department is looking at condensing the system for work orders to one platform in order to save the district some money. The current projected goal for transition into one platform is slated for July 1.
**Additionally, Colleton County School District staff personnel Angela McAdoo submitted her formal letter of resignation to the school district on Wednesday, November 30 following the school board meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 29. McAdoo’s official last day is December 31.
More information will be combined with upcoming reports. The next school board meeting was held on Tuesday, Dec. 13.
The press and standard will be presenting an educational series with a weekly column breaking down each of the department reports to help provide the minutes of the meeting as a source of information for the community.
