We are currently working through a list of eligible families; and if you are aware of a family that is in need; please have them first contact  YPSILIVE@YCSCHOOLS.US. We will attempt to get them hooked up with Comcast Internet first. Hotspots are a great substitute but we need to ensure that everyone is aware of several caveats. First, they are not as fast as a cable Internet connection, so they are only ideal for one or two connections; not an entire family. Second, the hotspots are limited to work with YCS only devices. Families that receive a hotspot can only use a Chromebook or iPad from YCS as that is intended and how we program them. Third, these devices are limited to families that are in unique situations (some of those include transitory families, temporary housing families, etc), because we have a limited number of devices, we must carefully scrutinize them for families that really do need them.

Next, during each newsletter, I’m going to post a security tip to help ensure you conduct safe and diligent computing to protect yourselves. First tip; You are a target to hackers. Remember this as it is a fact no matter who you are. And considering we’re in tax return season hackers become really active during this time period. Don’t ever think, “that it won’t happen to me.” Everyone who uses a digital device is at risk, and the stakes are often really high for both your personal and financial well-being. Tip #1 = Practice good password management. I know that we often view passwords as inconvenient or having too many to manage often leads to short-cuts. But reusing the same password for everything is dangerous at best, and never changing them is bad. Using a password manager can help you maintain strong and unique passwords, that you can change often. There are tons of solutions, but one I like to use is LastPass (https://www.lastpass.com). Do some research and you’ll see these are really good solutions.

Nik Jackson  —  Technology Director