Dear IUSD Virtual Academy Community,
Today, during online instruction, a few classes experienced what is known as “Zoombombing,” which is when hackers or trolls gain access to a Zoom meeting and engage in disruptive or inappropriate behavior. Classes that experienced this may have heard offensive racial slurs or what the Irvine Police Department (IPD) has determined were non-credible threats.
While it is believed that those responsible are not IUSD students, IUSD Virtual Academy and IUSD do not tolerate this kind of negative and disruptive behavior and we are thoroughly investigating this matter in conjunction with IPD. Anyone involved in any sort of offensive behavior or even supporting it will be disciplined accordingly.
Please know that the safety of our students is our top priority, which includes online instruction. We are also working with the District’s Education Technology team to increase security measures and practices. This includes reminding students that they may not share meeting links, passwords or use false identities. Your support in reinforcing this online etiquette at home is greatly appreciated.
I would also like to take this opportunity to ask that our students follow our district core values and our school policies as outlined in our Student Parent Handbook. We firmly believe that our strength is in our diversity and we work to promote equity and social justice for our students.
We are here for you and if anyone would like to talk with someone about what happened, please visit our counseling page to contact a counselor.
Thank you and we are looking forward to making this a great school year.
Rebecca Roberts, Ed.D.
Principal, IUSD Virtual Academy Middle School and High School