Educational Service Unit Coordinating Council

10/08/2026

October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month! 🔒✨

We’ll be sharing quick security tips and best practices all month long. Stay tuned to keep your data safe!

10/06/2026

First Quarter Wrap-Up: Essential PowerSchool Checklist for Nebraska Schools 📝

10/06/2026

🚨 FREE CYBER & AI EVENT! 🚨
Don't miss the Nebraska Cybersecurity and AI Summit on October 22nd—and best of all, registration is 100% FREE!

Check out the flyer and register today!
📌events.govtech.com/Nebraska-Public-Sector-Cybersecurity-Summit.html

10/02/2026

📩 Your inbox is a target. Don't take the bait!

10/01/2026

🍂October is officially here, and all month long we’ll be sharing actionable tips to help keep our digital community safe. 🔒

We’re kicking things off with an incredible FREE resource for our K-12 education leaders, IT staff, and administrators:

On October 23rd, the Nebraska Department of Education (NDE) will host a live K-12 Cybersecurity Tabletop Exercise online.

This interactive session is designed to help schools practice response strategies, strengthen emergency preparedness, and build stronger resilience against cyber threats—all at no cost.

👉 How to join: Check out the flyer for full details and registration!

09/28/2026

Excited for this opportunity to connect, share, and learn together live and in-person at the NeMTSS Summit!

Don't miss The Good Life EDU's live podcast panel at the 2026 NeMTSS Summit: "What All Educators Can Do for Literacy." 📖

📆 Thursday, Oct. 8, 3-4 p.m. CDT
📍 Younes Conference Center North

Host Andrew Easton (Educational Service Unit Coordinating Council) will have a conversation with Nebraska literacy leaders at the state, ESU and district levels. Join us in the ballroom (or online) to learn about what's happening throughout the state, how it affects your school or district, and more about "Materials Matter for All" while connecting with fellow audience and panel members.

Panelists:
• Dr. Jane Stavem, Deputy Commissioner, Nebraska Department of Education
• Jamie Cook, Literacy Officer, Nebraska Department of Education
• David Lowe, Managing Director, SPED Strategies
• Sara Renken, Hamlow Elementary School Principal, District 145

🔗 https://nemtss.unl.edu/2026-summit/

09/22/2026

🤝 Welcome! Perkins County Public Schools!

Perkins County Schools

09/14/2026

🎙️ What’s actually working with AI in classrooms?

There’s no shortage of predictions, warnings, and hype surrounding AI in education. For our newest episode of The Good Life EDU Podcast, we wanted to get much more practical.

Matt Mervis of EdAdvance joined the pod this week for a conversation about what educators and students are actually doing with AI and what we’re beginning to learn after several years of experimentation.

We talk about students using AI as a thought partner rather than simply an answer machine, teachers designing experiences that are human first, AI in the middle, and human last, and young people using these tools to tackle real-world problems in some pretty remarkable ways.

We also get into the other side of the conversation: screen time, AI risks, academic integrity, and why “more technology” certainly doesn’t always mean “better learning.”

The clip below gives you a taste of the conversation. 👇

🎧 Listen to Episode 250: “Beyond the AI Hype: What’s Actually Working in Classrooms” here: bit.ly/TheGoodLifeEDU

09/14/2026

🤝 AI literacy is community work.

Students are already growing up in a world shaped by artificial intelligence. Our responsibility is not simply to tell them whether they can or cannot use it—it is to help them understand how to make safe, ethical, and thoughtful decisions. 🧐

🤖 That includes knowing what AI can and cannot do, being transparent about its use, and recognizing that sometimes the most AI-literate decision is choosing not to use it at all.

🔗In this video, educators and experts share how schools can move forward with curiosity, intentionality, and a clear focus on helping every student think critically and prepare for the future.

👀 Watch AI Literacy Is Community Work: Preparing Nebraska Schools for a Future Shaped by AI, and find more resources at https://nesupported.org/artificial-intelligence/.

Artificial intelligence is becoming part of how students, staff, and school systems encounter information, communication, and work. As schools and districts in Nebraska navigate these shifts, leaders are making local decisions about where AI may fit, where guardrails are needed, and where its use ma...

09/10/2026

Ready to build confidence with Canvas in your classroom? 🌽

Enroll in Growing with Canvas: Course 1 (Planting Your Canvas Course)! Designed specifically for K–12 teachers and Nebraska educators beginning their Canvas journey, this FREE, self-paced course offers practical, hands-on guidance to help you master the basics.

What you’ll learn to do:

Navigate Canvas using Global & Course Navigation tools

Identify & use content types like pages, assignments, discussions, quizzes, and files

Build a simple module to give students a clear learning pathway

Create engaging learning activities and opportunities for student interaction

Utilize SpeedGrader & feedback tools to support student growth and communication

Develop a strong course structure that can continue to grow over time

Plant the seeds for a smooth school year! Click the link to enroll today and start growing your skills. 👇

🔗https://shorturl.at/JDzRs