EVERFI Announces Statewide Sponsorship Of Its Digital Citizenship Platform

EverFi, Inc., a leading education technology company, today announced the statewide sponsorship of its digital literacy and citizenship learning platform across both Kentucky and Virginia. EverFi has partnered with Neustar, Inc., a trusted, neutral provider of real-time information and analysis to the Internet, telecommunications, and entertainment industries, to provide its cutting-edge “My Digital Life” learning platform at no cost to schools across both states.

“Students today often have access to the tools necessary to succeed – computers, the Internet, smart phones – but do they leverage the technology in a responsible way?” said EverFi CEO Tom Davidson. “For many students, knowledge on such issues as cyberbullying, privacy, and responsible social networking is the new digital divide. EverFi is working to tackle this knowledge gap head on and at scale.”

Powered by EverFi, the Neustar My Digital Life program launched today at the Virginia Capitol with remarks by Governor Robert McDonnell, Senator Mark Warner, Secretary of Education Laura Fornash, Henrico County Superintendent Patrick Russo, and Neustar President and CEO Lisa Hook. The program also launched across Kentucky on January 9th with remarks by U.S. Representative John Yarmuth and Jefferson County Public Schools Superintendent Donna Hargens.

“At Neustar we are passionate about both STEM education and teaching students how to leverage technology in safe and responsible ways,” said Neustar President and CEO Lisa Hook. “EverFi has developed an entirely new way to deliver this important digital citizenship education to students, and Neustar is thrilled to be the first statewide sponsor of EverFi’s learning platform.”

“Technology and the individualized tools it provides can fundamentally and positively change education,” said Governor Bob McDonnell. “This partnership with Neustar and EverFi has the potential to give Virginia students a better understanding of how that technology works and the risks and rewards it can bring to our lives.”

The My Digital Life program is an interactive, new-media learning platform that combines the power of cutting-edge instructional design, rich media, and gaming. The 3.5-hour curriculum is designed for students in 8th – 9th grade and aligns with national standards established by the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), as well as emerging state standards. The program covers a wide range of topics including privacy, security, cyberbullying, digital relationships, and digital addiction. The curriculum also focuses on building digital skills, such as creating a blog, maintaining a responsible social networking profile, and evaluating online research sources for legitimacy. The learning platform tracks both knowledge gain as well as students’ attitudes and behaviors on these important issues.