Founded in 1926, Canberra Girls' Grammar School (CGGS) in Deakin, ACT, is an independent Anglican School with elite alumni. The school has approximately 1500 students spread between an Early Learning Centre (ELC), and a Junior and Senior School. The School is co-educational from Early Learning to Year 2, with boarding facilities for students in Years 7 to 12. As anyone involved in the care of those under the age of 18 knows, managing internet access among children and young adults, and the wealth of information and tools it permits, is a daunting task Students require access to the latest online resources but must adhere to agreed school internet and web policies aimed at ensuring the safety of all involved.
Schools also have a duty of care to protect students from online predators and cyberbullying by managing outbound access to websites and communications tools, whilst monitoring inbound traffic for appropriate content. Finally, educational IT departments need to manage internet and email traffic and spam volumes to keep networks running smoothly, while staying within data allowances.
"Online safety in schools plays such a critical role and is way beyond a simple technology box sale, given the rapid-moving nature of the internet combined with an audience which is curious and impressionable," said Colin Stevens, Network Manager at Canberra Girls' Grammar School. "Clearswift recognised this, and demonstrated its expertise in this field could match our diligent approach. Clearswift has worked in partnership with us to tackle these thorny and complex issues."
By deploying Clearswift, Canberra Girls' Grammar has not only dramatically reduced its spam levels by almost two thirds, but its network traffic has also been cleansed. Most critically, the safety of students from cyber-bullying and potential online predators has been considerably strengthened. The vast majority of harmful and harmless spam received by Canberra Girls' Grammar School is rejected at its network gateway, with any questionable content being quarantined. This is then self-managed by technical teams, teaching staff and, where appropriate, by students themselves.
