K12 SIX Applauds Launch of K-12 Education Cybersecurity Council

On March 28, 2024, the U.S. Department of Education—in coordination with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA)—held the kickoff meeting of the Education Facilities Subsector Government Coordinating Council (GCC), designed to facilitate formal, ongoing collaboration between all levels of government and the education sector on issues of K-12 cybersecurity risk management. Organized in response to the growing frequency and severity of cybersecurity incidents being experienced by school systems nationwide, the convening of the GCC was in fulfillment of White House commitments made in August 2023 and in response to U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) reports requested by Members of Congress (2021, 2022). The launch of the GCC marks an inflection point for the K-12 education sector, bringing it on par with other critical infrastructure sectors and subsectors that have previously established such stakeholder councils.

K12 Security Information eXchange (K12 SIX) and representatives of its membership are pleased to sit alongside other key stakeholder organizations on the GCC, such as AASA, Association of Educational Service Agencies, Consortium for School Networking, Council of Administrators of Special Education, Council of Chief State School Officers, Council of Great City Schools, National Association of Elementary School Principals, National Association of Secondary School Principals, National Association of State CIOs, National Rural Education Association, National School Boards Association, and State Educational Technology Directors Association.

Following the kickoff meeting, K12 SIX Director Doug Levin applauded the Administration’s commitment to addressing the emerging cybersecurity needs of the K-12 sector, “Cybersecurity incidents experienced by school systems nationwide have demonstrated that the K-12 sector both needs and deserves support specifically tailored to its unique context. We applaud the U.S. Department of Education for fulfilling its commitment—in partnership with CISA—to launching the Education Facilities Subsector GCC and strengthening collaboration among and between members of the K-12 community and the Federal government. K12 SIX looks forward to working alongside GCC stakeholders to increase the cybersecurity resilience of the nation’s school systems.”