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.
Lightning Chat | Episode 12 | AI Usage Audit Report
Most districts think they have one or two AI tools in use. The real number is usually a lot higher, and most of it isn't locked down the way people assume.In this session, Product Marketing Manager Larissa Somaio talks with Director of Product Kate McDermott about the AI Usage Audit, a free 14-day report that shows exactly what AI usage looks like across a district's network.What's covered:• Which AI apps are actually being used across your district• Actual minutes of use, broken down by grade band and school• How each app gets a compliance and security risk score• How to check an existing AI policy against real usage• How to prioritize which apps to approve, restrict, or investigate• Why the biggest surprise for most districts is scale, not any one app• What you can capture in just 14 days, even for freeReady to see it in your district? Request your free 14-day AI Usage Audit at: https://www.lightspeedsystems.com/resources/ai-usage-audit/
29 Jun 2026
Lightning Chat | Episode 11 | Screen Time
Screen time was THE topic at NCITL this year — and honestly, it's been THE topic in almost every conversation we've had with districts lately. So Rob Chambers, our EVP of Product, and I sat down to talk about it honestly: what the data actually shows, why parents and boards often assume the worst, and what the districts handling this well have in common.Spoiler: it's not about banning devices. It's about having the right data and knowing how to share it.----------------------------------Lightspeed Systems: https://www.lightspeedsystems.com/See your districts screen time data: https://www.lightspeedsystems.com/resources/screen-time-audit/----------------------------------
9 Oct 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
3 Oct 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.
23 Sept 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.
22 Sept 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/-------------------
8 Sept 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.
24 Jul 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 Jul 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.
17 Jun 2025
Lightning Chat | Episode 3 | Spring Summit Retrospective
Lightspeed Systems' Colin McCabe and Craig Chanoff share insights from their global Spring Summit tour, revealing universal education challenges and the transformative role of AI in classrooms in this interview.
Matthew Burg interviews John Genter about cybersecurity in K-12 education, highlighting rising threats, common vulnerabilities, and the importance of implementing basic security measures to protect sensitive data.
28 May 2025
Lightning Chat | Episode 1 | Proxies, VPNs, and the Hidden Risks on School Devices
Rob Chambers interviews Matthew Burg about students circumventing web filters using proxies and VPNs, highlighting the security, safety, and compliance risks involved in schools.
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