February 3, 2025
Sen. Mike Jacobson, Chairperson
Sen. Brian Hardin
Sen. Bob Hallstrom, Vice Chairperson
Sen. Merv Riepe
Sen. Eliot Bostar
Sen. R. Brad von Gillern
Sen. George Dungan
Sen. Dave Wordekemper
The Lincoln Public Schools submits this proponent testimony in support of the LB504 Adopt the Age-Appropriate Online Design Code Act, sponsored by Senator Bosn. The Age-Appropriate Online Design Code Act will protect minors from having their private information shared, provides parents with tools to monitor their child’s online safety and requires design features to prevent compulsive use of social media.
In recent years our Nebraska Department of Education Safety and Security Director Jay Martin has helped educate Nebraska school leaders, parents and students about the addictive algorithmic tendencies of social media use when it is unchecked. Jay has especially emphasized the potentially deleterious impacts of social media when used by young people whose brains are not fully developed and do not yet have the capacity to understand how compulsive use may exacerbate feelings of negative self image and other adverse effects.
As Jay has noted, “exposure to digital nuances impacts all of us on a behavioral, mental, and emotional level. Developing our digital wisdom will make us more mindful of the best practices to assist student students with better digital citizenship.” Recent studies have also shown that excessive cell phone and social media use are causing a mental health crisis for our teenagers. These studies resulted in the U.S. Surgeon General releasing an advisory in May 2023 about the negative effects of social media on teens’ mental health. Experts agree that children and teens need clear cut rules and limitations when it comes to using digital devices and social media platforms.
LPS cares deeply about protecting our students digitally. We go to great lengths to make sure that the interactions a student is having online are safe and appropriate, that the data we collect about them as they go through school is securely held, and that we are helping students to continue to make good digital decisions when they are not under our watchful eye. We ensure this through full compliance with FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act) and CIPA (Children’s Internet Protection Act), in addition to other measures.
We support LB504 as consistent with these noted safeguards to protect young people and thank Senator Bosn for her leadership in bringing this proposal forward.
Sincerely,
Dr. John Skretta
Interim Superintendent
Lincoln Public Schools
