Lightning Chat

Lightspeed Systems

Lightning Chats, hosted by the Lightspeed Systems team, are quick, candid convos with experts on the front lines of edtech. Think of it as an edtech podcast without the long intros or awkward banter.

Episodes

  1. 10/09/2025

    Lightning Chat | Episode 10 | Student Data Privacy in Action

    Join Jiana Khazma, Product Marketing Manager at Lightspeed Systems, as she chats with Matt Jackson from Fayette County Public Schools, Georgia, about how his district transformed its approach to student data privacy. Discover how Fayette County went from a “wild west” of app and website use to a robust, transparent approval process that puts student safety, instructional value, and community trust first.In this episode, you’ll learn:• How Fayette County vets and approves digital resources using a structured, multi-layered process• What vendors must provide to meet district privacy standards• How ongoing monitoring and transparency build trust with families• The impact of data privacy on tech spending and ROIDon’t miss these practical insights and real-world strategies for making student data privacy a priority in your district!#StudentDataPrivacy #EdTech #K12 #LightningChat #LightspeedSystems

    34 min

  2. 10/03/2025

    Lightning Chat | Episode 9 | Artificial Intelligence in K-12

    Hello everyone, Donal McMahon here, Chief AI Officer at Lightspeed Systems. If you’re reading this, you probably already know: AI is having a moment. And when I say a moment, I mean a seismic shift in how we live, learn, and interact. Since the launch of ChatGPT on November 30th, 2022, we’ve seen user growth like never before—over 800 million users in just 34 months. For context, that’s faster uptake than YouTube, Facebook, Google, or even the internet itself saw in their early years. ChatGPT alone hit 100 million users in a single month. For comparison, Google took nearly six years to reach that mark. The pace is breathtaking, and as someone who’s worked in AI at Google, Indeed, and now Lightspeed, I can tell you: this is truly unprecedented.

    13 min

  3. 09/23/2025

    Lightning Chat | Episode 8 | Student Reporting in the Era of Cell Phone-Free Schools

    Good afternoon, Lightspeed community! I’m Kevin Askew, VP of Sales here at Lightspeed Systems, and I’m excited to welcome you to another episode of Lightning Chat. Today, I was joined by the insightful Erika Johnson, Strategic Account Manager and a veteran building leader with 25 years of experience in Wisconsin schools. Together, we tackled a topic that’s rapidly reshaping the landscape of school safety: how student reporting is evolving as cell phone-free education takes hold.

    10 min

  4. 09/22/2025

    Lightning Chat | Episode 7 | Safety in the UK

    Colin McCabe (General Manager, International) and Shaun Phillips (EMEA Sales Director) dig into the UK Student Safety Report. It combines national data with insights from Lightspeed Alert and Lightspeed StopIt tools to highlight the risks kids face today: bullying, violence, mental health struggles. They reacted to the stats in real-time, sharing their thoughts on what this data means for schools and everyone focused on student safety. Here are some takeaways from our discussion: ○ Bullying Hits Hard: About 40% of UK pupils face bullying yearly, with victims nine times more likely to consider suicide. Physical violence happens most often in schools, where kids should feel safe. ○ Tech Spots Risks Fast: Lightspeed Alert scanned over 454 million pieces of content from August 2024 to May 2025, flagging 82,000 high-risk incidents and 4,000 imminent threats to help schools act quickly. ○ Risks Don’t Stop at the Bell: Concerns spike in evenings, late nights, and during autumn or exam season, showing schools need 24/7 plans to tackle issues like self-harm and cyberbullying. -------------------Lightspeed Systems: https://www.lightspeedsystems.com/Lightspeed Alert: https://www.lightspeedsystems.com/products/lightspeed-alert/Lightspeed StopIt: https://www.lightspeedsystems.com/products/lightspeed-stopit/Get the Report: https://bit.ly/3IwK9s3Get a Demo: https://www.lightspeedsystems.com/request-a-demo/-------------------

    39 min

  5. 09/08/2025

    Lightning Chat | Episode 6 | The Growing Threat of Phishing Attacks

    In Episode 6 of our Lighting Chat series, John Genter, Chief Information Security Officer at Lightspeed Systems, and Brad White, Principal Applications Security Architect, cover the growing threat of phishing attacks targeting K-12 schools. Drawing from their 30+ years of experience in education and cybersecurity, they discuss why schools are vulnerable, recent real-world incidents, and practical, low-cost strategies to combat phishing.

    19 min

  6. 07/24/2025

    Lightning Chat | Episode 5 | Safety Challenges, Strategies, and How Lightspeed Can Help

    In this episode of Lightning Chat, Jennifer Duer (Director, Product) and Brock Anderson (Senior Director, Strategic Programs) sit down to discuss common safety challenges in the K-12 environment, productive strategies to ensure student safety, and how Lightspeed is ready and able to help protect your students.

    14 min

  7. 07/14/2025

    Lightning Chat | Episode 4 | How Schools Can Strengthen BTA and Prevention

    In this episode of Lightning Chat, Teresa Rueder (Senior Director, Customer Operations) and Wes Lawrence (Vice President, Operations) discuss applicable security and safety measures for schools to protect students. From preventative security to proactive safety, Teresa and Wes cover Lightspeed Anonymous Student Reporting and Human Review for a framework of holistic student safety.

    29 min

  8. 06/17/2025

    Lightning Chat | Episode 3 | Spring Summit Retrospective

    In this episode of Lightning Chat, Colin McCabe and Craig Chanoff from Lightspeed Systems reflect on their recent global tour for the Spring Summit, where they engaged with education leaders from Scotland, Sweden, Dubai, and Sao Paulo. They discuss the universal challenges in education, such as funding inequities and the integration of technology, emphasizing how AI is revolutionizing classrooms. Colin notes, “Education has always had this mission to prepare students for success,” while Craig highlights the need for collaboration among parents, teachers, and administrators. Tune in to hear insights on the future of edtech, the importance of cybersecurity, and the necessity of partnerships in creating effective educational environments. Don’t miss this thought-provoking conversation!

    20 min

  9. 05/28/2025

    Lightning Chat | Episode 2 | Unpacking Cybersecurity in K-12 Education

    Unpacking Cybersecurity in K-12 Education with John Genter In our second episode of Lightning Chats, Matthew Burg (Principal Product Manager, Lightspeed Filter) sits down with John Genter (Chief Information Security Officer, Lightspeed Systems) to delve into the critical topic of cybersecurity in K-12 education. As schools increasingly rely on digital tools and online resources, understanding the unique challenges they face in cybersecurity is more important than ever. Here’s a taste of what they cover: The Importance of Cybersecurity in Schools: John emphasizes that schools hold sensitive data related to students and staff, making them attractive targets for cyber threats. Unlike businesses that primarily contend with external hackers, schools have a larger internal population that can inadvertently introduce vulnerabilities.Rising Threats: Recent statistics highlight a staggering 69% increase in ransomware attacks targeting global education in the first quarter alone. Additionally, the Center for Internet Security reported that 82% of schools experienced some form of cyber incident in the past year, underscoring the urgent need for robust cybersecurity measures.Common Vulnerabilities: Despite advances in technology, many incidents stem from failures to implement basic security measures, such as multi-factor authentication (MFA), weak passwords, and falling for phishing attempts. John points out that education around these vulnerabilities is crucial, especially among students who may lack digital literacy.The Zero Trust Model: Matthew and John discuss the principles of Zero Trust, which advocates for a “trust but verify” approach. This entails ensuring that only authorized users can access systems and that endpoints are secured to prevent unauthorized downloads or actions that could compromise the network.Vendor Responsibility: John highlights the role of vendors like Lightspeed in maintaining cybersecurity standards. By conducting regular security reviews, implementing MFA, and fostering a culture of security awareness among employees, Lightspeed aims to be a reliable partner for schools.Resources for Improvement: John recommends utilizing resources from the Center for Internet Security and OWASP to help schools strengthen their cybersecurity practices. These organizations provide valuable insights and guidelines that schools can adopt to bolster their defenses.

    18 min

  10. 05/28/2025

    Lightning Chat | Episode 1 | Proxies, VPNs, and the Hidden Risks on School Devices

    For our first episode, Matthew Burg (Principal Product Manager, Lightspeed Filter) sits down with Rob Chambers (EVP of Product) to unpack a challenge schools (and Lightspeed) know all too well: students constantly looking for ways to bypass web filters. Here’s a taste of what they cover: The risks of proxies, VPNs, and other anonymizers and bypass tools—from security to safety to complianceWhat’s new (and what’s the same as ever) when it comes to students attempting to bypass protectionsWhat schools should be doing to protect against these bypass attemptsHow Lightspeed takes a layered approach to filter bypass protections—including a discussion of how Signal, our latest product, adds another layer of protection at the source

    17 min
  • 10 Episodes

About

Lightning Chats, hosted by the Lightspeed Systems team, are quick, candid convos with experts on the front lines of edtech. Think of it as an edtech podcast without the long intros or awkward banter.

Information

  • Creator
    Lightspeed Systems
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    10
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Lightspeed Systems
  • Show Website
    Lightning Chat