A 13-year-old student at a Valparaiso, Ind., middle school faces a felony charge of hacking into the school computer system.
The Times of Northwest Indiana reports that the Benjamin Franklin Middle School student was arrested after an investigation into ongoing disruptions in online learning at Valparaiso Community Schools.
The boy, whose identity was not disclosed, was charged with offense against a computer user, Valparaiso police Capt.Joe Hall says.
School officials have been reporting repeated cyber attacks on the district's e-learning systems that had been regularly disconnecting students from their classrooms.
Interim School Superintendent Michael Berta says it is his understanding the boy was working alone and that the e-learning woes had come to an end.
The hacking was complicating educational challenges already posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, Berta says.
Valparaiso Community Schools reopened for in-person instruction last month; the district gave families an option to pursue virtual instruction if they were not yet ready to send their students back to the classroom amid the coronavirus pandemic.
About 23% of the district's students are engaging in the district's remote learning option, in which teachers are responsible for leading the instruction of students attending school both in person and remotely.
