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A bizzare tale of school bureaucarcy gone horribly wrong . . . . .
Thirteen Kutztown Area High School students are facing felony charges for tampering with district-issued laptop computers.
According to parent testimony and confirmed by an otherwise vaguely-worded letter from the Kutztown Police Department, students got hold of the system's secret administrative password and reconfigured their computers to achieve greater Internet and network access.
Some students used the newfound freedom to download music and inappropriate images from the Internet.
James Shrawder spoke on behalf of a group of parents of six of the accused at a June 20 school board meeting. He said the administration may have railroaded the process by not providing authorities with the whole story.
"That's absurd," Superintendent Brenda S. Winkler said after the board meeting, in response to Shrawder's allegations that the administration withheld information until the end of the school year.
Shrawder asked that the school board act in order to reverse the damage done by the administration.
Shrawder said the secret password "50Trexler," was widely-known among the student body and distributed early in the school year. It allowed between 80 and 100 students to reconfigure their laptops, he said.
The more computer-savvy students began to disable the administrations' ability to spy on the students' computer use. For others, it became a game, trying to outsmart the administration and compete with fellow students who held the secret, Shrawder said.
"I don't know why this is such a big deal," he said. "At no time was the security of the server breached, and I don't know that it has cost the taxpayers any money."
Winkler agreed that the server, where grades and other private records are stored, was never threatened.
Shrawder acknowledged that the students broke school rules, but he and the other parents protested what they believe is the heavy-handed approach to the problem.
Most of the students accused were freshmen, but a few were sophomores and juniors. None of the accused were seniors.
Parents also worried that a felony conviction would permanently damage their child's record for an infraction that may otherwise have resulted in a grounding if it were discovered by a parent.
"I don't think they knew what this could do to their future," said LeAnn Shoemaker, a parent of one of the accused.
Her 15-year-old son John, who will be a sophomore next fall, agreed.
"I knew it was against school policy," he said. "But I didn't know it was a felony."
Winkler said the administration could not comment on student disciplinary action.
"We continue to collaborate with police," she said.
She also noted that charges have not been formally issued and could not comment on the perceived harsh penalty.
School Board President Don C. Vymazal said he sympathized with the parents.
"They are concerned and we would be too," he said.
For the moment, parents were uncertain how to react to the threat of charges against their children. Paperwork is hung up in county juvenile court system and the only indication of the charges is the letter sent to parents and signed by Officer Walter J. Skavinsky of the Kutztown Police Department.
The Skavinsky letter, dated May 31, says the police were contacted on May 2 by members of the high school staff. An investigation found that 13 students had violated the school's permitted use policy and gained greater access to the school's Internet and intranet resources.
Skavinsky consulted with the Berks County District Attorney's office and recommended charges of "Computer Trespass," in violation of PA criminal code section 7615, which carries a third degree felony charge.
The letter tells parents that juveniles charged with a crime "must present themselves in a timely manner to the arresting police department for the purposes of fingerprinting and identification."
The iBook laptops were issued to all high school students last fall in an experimental program with Apple computers.
The program will cost up to $900,000 over the next four years.
Winkler reaffirmed the district's commitment to the program saying it has been "a learning experience."
This is what happens when an entrenched bureaucracy is afraid of technology .
Thirteen Kutztown Area High School students are facing felony charges for tampering with district-issued laptop computers.
According to parent testimony and confirmed by an otherwise vaguely-worded letter from the Kutztown Police Department, students got hold of the system's secret administrative password and reconfigured their computers to achieve greater Internet and network access.
Some students used the newfound freedom to download music and inappropriate images from the Internet.
James Shrawder spoke on behalf of a group of parents of six of the accused at a June 20 school board meeting. He said the administration may have railroaded the process by not providing authorities with the whole story.
"That's absurd," Superintendent Brenda S. Winkler said after the board meeting, in response to Shrawder's allegations that the administration withheld information until the end of the school year.
Shrawder asked that the school board act in order to reverse the damage done by the administration.
Shrawder said the secret password "50Trexler," was widely-known among the student body and distributed early in the school year. It allowed between 80 and 100 students to reconfigure their laptops, he said.
The more computer-savvy students began to disable the administrations' ability to spy on the students' computer use. For others, it became a game, trying to outsmart the administration and compete with fellow students who held the secret, Shrawder said.
"I don't know why this is such a big deal," he said. "At no time was the security of the server breached, and I don't know that it has cost the taxpayers any money."
Winkler agreed that the server, where grades and other private records are stored, was never threatened.
Shrawder acknowledged that the students broke school rules, but he and the other parents protested what they believe is the heavy-handed approach to the problem.
Most of the students accused were freshmen, but a few were sophomores and juniors. None of the accused were seniors.
Parents also worried that a felony conviction would permanently damage their child's record for an infraction that may otherwise have resulted in a grounding if it were discovered by a parent.
"I don't think they knew what this could do to their future," said LeAnn Shoemaker, a parent of one of the accused.
Her 15-year-old son John, who will be a sophomore next fall, agreed.
"I knew it was against school policy," he said. "But I didn't know it was a felony."
Winkler said the administration could not comment on student disciplinary action.
"We continue to collaborate with police," she said.
She also noted that charges have not been formally issued and could not comment on the perceived harsh penalty.
School Board President Don C. Vymazal said he sympathized with the parents.
"They are concerned and we would be too," he said.
For the moment, parents were uncertain how to react to the threat of charges against their children. Paperwork is hung up in county juvenile court system and the only indication of the charges is the letter sent to parents and signed by Officer Walter J. Skavinsky of the Kutztown Police Department.
The Skavinsky letter, dated May 31, says the police were contacted on May 2 by members of the high school staff. An investigation found that 13 students had violated the school's permitted use policy and gained greater access to the school's Internet and intranet resources.
Skavinsky consulted with the Berks County District Attorney's office and recommended charges of "Computer Trespass," in violation of PA criminal code section 7615, which carries a third degree felony charge.
The letter tells parents that juveniles charged with a crime "must present themselves in a timely manner to the arresting police department for the purposes of fingerprinting and identification."
The iBook laptops were issued to all high school students last fall in an experimental program with Apple computers.
The program will cost up to $900,000 over the next four years.
Winkler reaffirmed the district's commitment to the program saying it has been "a learning experience."
This is what happens when an entrenched bureaucracy is afraid of technology .
Kid is a fascist 
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