Back up: Earlier this year, schools in Des Moines, Marshalltown, and two of Iowa’s regent universities were caught up in a breach of the Canvas learning platform that hit 9,000 schools worldwide — right as students were preparing for final exams.
As a former counterintelligence officer, I’ve spent my career tracking threats like these. The Department of Education estimates the average K-12 school now faces five cyber threats every week. Back home in Iowa, I’ve heard from parents and teachers asking for the tools to fight back.
What’s new: I just introduced the bipartisan Enhancing K-12 Cybersecurity Act to put those tools in their hands. ⬇️
Our bill would:
🛡️ Strengthen school cyber defenses so districts can find and fix security gaps before hackers get in.
⚠️ Get threat information to schools faster with real-time alerts and cybersecurity resources to respond before attacks spread.
🤝 Help schools learn from past attacks by sharing lessons and best practices so other districts can strengthen their defenses.
Why it matters: When a cyberattack hits a district, the first thing Iowa parents hear is that school is closed. Classes get canceled, instruction stops for days or even weeks, and families are left scrambling. The damage lasts even longer. Student information gets exposed, and the cost of rebuilding a district’s systems can cost millions. In cybersecurity, a strong defense is the best offense — and that’s exactly what our bill delivers.
Bottom Line: After two decades of service in defense of our nation, I’ve learned the difference between a bad day and a disaster is whether you saw it coming. Iowa schools deserve access to the warning signals and the backup to act on them. I’ll keep working across the aisle to make sure Iowa classrooms can stop cyber attacks before they happen.