Bulldog Bulletin
November E-Newsletter
Important Message to all Parents/Guardians of Bentley Students:
Parents and Guardians,
We’ve recently been made aware of students from Bentley and other surrounding schools accessing a new and highly offensive social media application called afterschoolapp.com. The app is described as “an anonymous and private message board for your school” and can be downloaded to an iPhone, iPod or through Safari (a web browser developed by Apple) and accessed via Facebook.
Districts have begun receiving calls about this site from parents who are upset with its content. In some cases, graphic and sexually explicit videos have been posted followed by students posting inappropriate comments, sometimes about fellow students in their own or neighboring school districts. As you can imagine, this is distressing for students, some of whom are following this site just to make sure no one is making comments about them. What is different about this site, making it even more troubling, is that posts are made anonymously (unlike on other social media sites where you can trace a username back to an email account). Because of the way this site runs, there is little the district can do if a student is being targeted because the person posting the comments cannot be identified.
We also wanted to make it clear that even though this app is called “After School – Funny Anonymous Schools News For Confessions and Compliments,” it is in NO way affiliated, endorsed or organized through the school district.
High School Resource Officer Dennis Gross has asked us to remind students and parents that possessing child pornography (which would include anyone 18 or younger) or creating, manufacturing or delivering child pornography is a felony offense, punishable with up to 15 years in prison.
We encourage you to talk with your student about this site and responsible use of social media. If you want to check to see if your child has downloaded the app to his/her iPhone and/or iPod, look for an icon of a tiger wearing yellow striped sunglasses. We have blocked the app from being added to district-owned I-Pads, however, we cannot block the app from being added to personal electronic equipment. The app is free and rated for ages 12 and over. It is developed by Ambient and their contact information is: support@afterschoolapp.com.
As always, if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact your building principal.
Thank you for your continued partnership,
Rebekah Dupuis
Superintendent
Bentley Community Schools