February 27, 2019
Twelve Students Selected from over 500 Entries Received from Schools Across New York State
Wednesday, February 27, 2019
The New York State Office of Information Technology Services (ITS) today announced the 12 winners of the New York State Kids Safe Online Poster Contest. The winners were selected from more than 500 entries submitted by 85 schools across New York State. View the winning posters here.
Held annually since 2005, the contest engages young people to think about cyber security through the creation of posters that encourage their peers to use the Internet safely and securely. The contest also serves as a tool to help teachers across New York State address cyber security and online safety issues such as cyber bullying, the appropriate use of text messages and social media.
The contest, hosted in conjunction with the Center for Internet Security (CIS) Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC) national poster contest, was open to New York State students in kindergarten through twelfth grade.
"With technology so easily accessible for today's children, we must increase our efforts to educate young people about the importance of cyber safety. The New York State Safe Online Poster Contest is one way to help raise awareness about the many risks associated with being online," New York State Chief Information Officer Robert H. Samson said. "ITS is pleased to again partner with MS-ISAC on this important initiative. I congratulate our contest winners and thank all of the students and teachers who participated across the state."
"Children today are forced to be aware of the digital footprint they are leaving every day," New York State Chief Information Security Officer Deborah Snyder said. "Learning at a young age that the internet provides a wealth of knowledge, but also requires the exercise of responsibility, has become a prevalent classroom topic, and New York teachers and parents are taking every opportunity to support that message. The entries submitted prove that cyber security is being taken seriously in the classroom and students are rising to the challenge of being cyber smart."
"Our youth have embraced technology as part of their daily lives, but they also need to recognize the risks associated with using technology," Senior Vice President of Operations and Chair of the MS-ISAC Thomas Duffy said. "Everyone is a winner in the Kids Safe Online Poster Contest. Each participant, and those who view the winning entries and calendars, have a better understanding of how to stay safe online. We live in a digital world and need to be diligent in safeguarding our information."
The winners' art work will be featured in the 2020 New York State Kids Safe Online Calendar. Winners will also receive a New York State certificate. All winning entries are submitted to the National K-12 Poster Contest conducted by the CIS MS-ISAC.
Congratulations to the 2018-2019 New York State Poster Contest Winners:
Grade K - 2
Anabelle Choez - P.S. 12 James B. Colgate, District 24
Wilber Cordova - Evergreen Charter School
Aaron Gonzales - Hampton Street School, Mineola Public Schools
Grade 3 - 5
Meredith Roberts - North Tonawanda Intermediate School, North Tonawanda City School District
Ashley Torres - P.S. 12 James B. Colgate, District 24
Dylan Vecchiarello - Cherokee Street Elementary School, Connetquot Central School District
Grade 6 - 8
Marcella Codd - The Epiphany School, Archdiocese of New York
Helee Shukla - New Hyde Park Elementary, Sewanhaka Central School District
Angelina V.
Grade 9 - 12
Danielle Henneborn - Walt Whitman High School, South Huntington Union Free School District
Emily Kanouff - Falconer Central School District
Megan Ung - Brooklyn Technical High School, District 13
For more information on the New York State Kids Safe Online Poster Contest or for additional information on how to stay safe from cyber threats, please visit https://its.ny.gov/cybersecurity.
About ITS
The New York State Office of Information Technology Services (ITS) was created in 2012 to transform IT services in an effort to make New York State government work smarter for its citizens and enable the state to be accessible for businesses through the use of technology. ITS provides statewide IT strategic direction, directs IT policy and delivers centralized IT products and services that support the mission of the State. ITS operates data centers 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to support statewide mission-critical applications for over 50 Agencies, over 17 million citizen accounts, 120,000 employee accounts, 60,000 phones, 99,000 desktops and laptops, and 3,433 Virtual Desktop remote connections. ITS operates a secure network of over 1,600 miles of fiber to deliver telecommunications, Internet and Intranet services, enterprise email systems and support, IT training, networking, data storage and processing to State government entities in addition to developing new services in support of citizens, businesses and State Agencies.
For more information, visit https://its.ny.gov and follow us on Twitter @nysits.