Vogelweh Elementary Hosts Parent Internet Safety Night
VOGELWEH, Germany — Vogelweh Elementary School recently hosted a Parent Internet Safety Night to help families better understand online risks and promote safe, responsible technology use among students.
The event was organized by Vogelweh Elementary School counselors Nicole Flores and Jason Greve and featured guest speakers from the Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID), the Air Force Office of Special Investigations (OSI), Dr. Xavier Flores, and Sarah Showalter, a former Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) educational technologist.
Parents received practical information about current online threats facing children and strategies for monitoring online activity at home.
“Outreach by law enforcement—alongside the support of parents and educators—remains one of the best ways to protect our children from the dangers of the internet and illegal drugs,” said Steven Ausfeldt, special agent in charge, Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division, Europe Field Office. “Together, Army CID and Air Force OSI are working to build safer, healthier communities by providing expert guidance on risks and helping families reduce children’s exposure to them.”
Dr. Flores highlighted online monitoring tools available to DoDEA educators and explained how digital citizenship lessons are embedded across DoDEA resources. Showalter introduced parents to Common Sense Media, a free resource that provides digital citizenship lessons and guidance for families.
While parents attended the presentations, students and younger siblings participated in hands-on activities from DoDEA’s Digital Citizenship Night Kit. Activities included books focused on digital safety, a “Failing Forward” discussion activity about online mistakes, “Would You Rather?” scenarios encouraging thoughtful digital choices, and interactive technology-based activities using Wixie and Seesaw.
The following week, Army CID extended the learning by delivering a 30-minute digital citizenship and internet safety lesson in every classroom at Vogelweh Elementary School.
Vogelweh Elementary School continues to collaborate with Army and Air Force community partners to promote safe, responsible technology use for all students.
