After receiving two requests to block YouTube access because of inappropriate student usage, Chief Technology Officer Dr. Doug Brubaker announced open admittance to the website will be restricted.

“It’s not a permanent block,” Dr. Brubaker said. “It just gives us an opportunity to develop better filtering policies while minimizing risks to students.”

YouTube access had previously been available to any student. Senior Kaylee Brown used this to her advantage during her office aid period when she had spare time to kill.

“I think blocking YouTube is a good thing,”  Brown said. “People are using if for the wrong things.”

Despite the number of students using this privilege to find unsuitable material, YouTube offers students resources unobtainable from other websites allowing for better presentations.

“Sometimes showing a video example explains better than words can,” Legacy Webmaster Jennifer Roberts said. “Because all of the computer labs have Net Support, I think the teacher should block individual computers.”

Although YouTube is presently blocked, Twitter.com is now available for student use in class.

“I love Twitter and YouTube,” Mr. Brubaker said. “It’s sometimes just a challenge to figure out how to maximize their potential for students.”

 According to Dr. Brubaker, the program Lightspeed is currently being used to filter out inappropriate material while allowing access to valuable content. Until new policies for access are written over the summer, teachers will have to request usage of YouTube 48 hours prior to when they need the website.

“I want to stress it’s not a total ban, Dr. Brubaker said. “Teachers can get access with a little notice. We want to help when we can.”