McPherson school district responds to internet safety issues

The superintendent of McPherson Unified School District 418 responds after a parent said his child was exposed to pornographic material while working on a homework assignment.

It all started with a sixth grader doing homework with his mom on a computer provided by his school.

There was a ink on the Summit platform to a document from an outside provider, and that document or that link had been vetted, but an inappropriate link was connected to that one.

McPherson schools superintendent Gordon Mohn says Summit is a learning app put on computers owned by the district.

"I was as frustrated or as displeased as I think the parent was. This absolutely was not something that was acceptable, and we have an obligation to protect our students."

According to a letter the district sent parents, the student was reading an article through the app when he came across the inappropriate content. The district discontinued internet service the next day while it worked to figure out how this happened.

Mohn says the link was vetted but links can change.

The district says the pornographic content managed to get through two internet filter systems, and it is looking at how it can prevent this from happening in the future.

"I want a safe environment for those kids too, so we’re absolutely committed to that. It’s so important that we protect our kids."

The superintendent says he has not heard of other students running into this content.