Page 5 - THE Journal Innovation in Education, October 2021

making sure that whatever happens doesn’t shut down the district unexpectedly.
ƒ The third leg is enablement of education, embracing the digital wave and taming it to work for your schools.
There is no silver bullet-in-a-box that you can buy to achieve this balance. But there is one step you can take that will help you move closer to stability. That’s to leverage the industry
and have conversations with experts. They’ll help you elicit
your district’s specific strengths and weaknesses. Are your security and system tools configured properly? Do you know what your staff is good at and what expertise they have? What’s the makeup of your district user base? Are they using school devices or their own? The answers to all of those kinds of questions should change the advice you get.
For example, in my new role at Palo Alto Networks, when a district person comes to me and says, “I need to figure out this ransomware stuff,” I don’t say, “Here, you need to get this firewall” or “You need to get this DNS solution.” I prefer to ask, “Do you have a good handle on your devices? Do you have good governance in your district?” and so on. We talk. And then based on their responses, I’ll recommend
a particular approach. And I’ll help them plan their next two or three steps. After all, cybersecurity isn’t a one-and-done project; it’s a journey.
I like to say, “Tools before strategy? You’re headed for tragedy.” If your vendors spend more time telling you how great their solutions are, reconsider whom you’re listening to. Work with a company that can ask you critical questions that will help uncover what your situation really is in the bigger context.
The hard part is finding somebody who understands K-12 inside and out, to help you keep your balance on that three- legged stool, while also providing solid guidance based on true expertise. That’s why Palo Alto Networks is investing in strategists like me who have a background in K-12. We know what you’re experiencing because we’ve done it ourselves. That’s what makes us different.
Reach out to Fadi via email at fafadhil@paloaltonetworks. com to continue the conversation.
Fadi Fadhil is a cybersecurity strategist with Palo Alto Networks. Previously, he served almost 16 years in IT roles in K-12, including as CIO of Minneapolis Public Schools and Saint Paul Public Schools, as well as CIO of the City of Minneapolis.
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