All Highline Schools Closed on Wednesday Due to Cyber Security Incident

All Highline schools will be closed on Wednesday, 11 September, due to a cyber security incident. Schools were already closed on Monday and Tuesday while the district investigated unauthorised activities.

• All schools in Highline will remain closed on Wednesday.
• The incident concerns the district’s technology systems.
• There is no evidence that information from staff, families, or students has been compromised.
• All school activities, including sports and meetings, are cancelled.
• The central office will remain open.

Highline Public Schools, located in the south of King County, announced the closures via its website. As a precaution, the district has taken certain systems offline that are essential for school operations. Office 365, including email and the district’s website, will remain operational.

“Our investigation into the unauthorised activities in our technology systems is still ongoing, and critical systems remain offline,” stated Highline. “We have no evidence that information from staff, families, or students has been compromised. Should this change, we will notify those affected.”

All school activities, sporting events, and meetings are also cancelled, including the vaccination clinic. However, the central office will remain open, and school and central office administrators are expected to continue to report to work.

Highline shared a link to the expectations for staff during a school closure and asked employees to refer to it if they receive questions from families.

“We understand that the school closure is a significant disruption for our families and staff, but the safety of our students remains our top priority,” said the district.

Highline Superintendent Ivan Duran issued a statement acknowledging families’ disappointment over the postponement of the first day of kindergarten.

“My eldest son was supposed to start kindergarten in Highline today,” wrote Duran. “Like many of you, we were looking forward to this new chapter.”

Highline stated that it will provide more information about the incident and its impact on the technology systems as soon as further details are available.

“Thank you for your patience and understanding,” stated the district’s website.

• All Highline schools closed Wednesday due to cyber security incident, MyNorthwest.com.