10:06 a.m., Nov. 10, 2009----University of Delaware IT Client Support and Services is taking the message of responsible and safe computing to Delaware's high schools.

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The special sessions being offered at high schools, led by IT Client Support and Services student Residential Computing Consultants (RCCs), provide information on topics such as phishing, personal identity protection, safe social networking, and illegally obtaining copyrighted materials.

The RCCs conduct the sessions in an informal, approachable setting. They interject personal experiences and encourage discussion, allowing the high school audience to feel comfortable asking questions and sharing experiences. Feedback from high school students as well as their faculty and administrators has been very positive.

Nick Ungerson, a junior in UD's Lerner College of Business and Economics, said, “With Internet usage becoming as widespread as it is and with younger and younger children gaining access to Web sites, proper education on Internet practices is very worthwhile. I would go as far as to say that it is necessary to educate high school and younger students about the risks associated with the Internet.”

Until now, the program has been offered only in New Castle County. This semester, however, UD staff partnered with Elayne Starky from the Delaware Department of Technology and Information, Robin Agar from the Delaware Business, Industry, Education (BIE) Alliance, and several faculty and administrators from the Delaware Technical and Community College (Terry and Owens campuses) to extend the program to Kent and Sussex county schools.

In September, UD students helped train Delaware Tech students to deliver the program. In October, four University RCCs partnered with 12 Delaware Tech students to deliver the program to St. Georges Technical High School near Middletown.

Leslie Jett, a student in the computer information systems program at Delaware Tech's Terry Campus, said, “I feel that the program is important. I assumed, like many, that kids that age (14-15) know so much about the Internet, but I learned through my participation that they still need information about how their actions on the Internet can affect their lives.”

The program has been rewarding for both UD and Delaware Tech students. Ungerson said, “One of the most beneficial aspects of the program to me personally is knowing that I am teaching something worthwhile to children younger than me.”

UD students are currently being scheduled to speak at additional schools in New Castle County. Plans are underway for Delaware Tech students to begin presentations at southern Delaware high schools early next year.