Janesville School Board candidate was expelled as a student
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Kirk Henry
JANESVILLE — Kirk Henry said voters considering him for the Janesville School Board should focus on the person he has become, not the 17-year-old who four years ago crashed Craig High School’s computer system.
Henry, now 21, is one of six people running for three seats on the school board in the April election.
Henry said he gained access to computer passwords and to the district’s student-information system to warn school officials their system was vulnerable, he said.
The 17-year-old was suspended. Janesville police executed a search warrant on his home and confiscated computer equipment.
Documents filed with the search warrant alleged Henry installed a computer hard drive at Craig. The hard drive contained “software hacker tools” and records belonging to the district, according to court documents.
The district never identified Henry publicly, but officials said the student, who was expelled, had caused intermittent outages of the Craig computer system during a two-week period in fall 2006.
The district said a flood of “data packets” was released into the computer network at Craig through a computer loaded with hacking software, causing the outages.
Henry acknowledged that he was expelled, but he noted he was never arrested, never charged and never prosecuted.
Because he was 17, he could have been charged as an adult.
“I think if they had had a case and could have proved it, they would have charged me,” Henry said.
Henry said voters should consider what he has made of himself since that incident. He has gone to technical college, where he earned academic honors. He now is enrolled at UW-Whitewater. He started his own computer-service business in 2008.
“I think I have changed,” he said.
Henry graduated in 2007 and joined the Army. He fell and fractured his back during basic training, however, and after several months was released with an honorable discharge, he said.
Henry then moved to Fond du Lac and enrolled at Moraine Park Technical College’s computer network specialist program.
Henry was an honors student, a Moraine Park news release indicates. He said he also was inducted into the Phi Theta Kappa honor society and served in the student senate.
“I traveled the state, going to different meetings for technical colleges, representing our school,” Henry said.
Henry said he moved back to Janesville last fall and enrolled a UW-Whitewater. He is thinking about becoming an IT manager or going to grad school.
He supports himself with his business and is a member of the UW-W Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization, he said.
Henry said he was never malicious in what he did with the Craig computer system and was only trying to show the system’s vulnerability.
“I’m a very honest man. I didn’t want a bad person to come along … like a hacker,” he said.
The student’s attorney in 2006 told the Gazette the student technically didn't hack into the computer system and had no malicious intent.
For seven days in 2006, “teachers were unable to teach, and students were unable to attend classes reliant on this technology. Staff who rely on this technology were unable to perform portions of their work …” the district said in a written statement.
The district said it was unaware of any lost data, unauthorized changes to teacher or student passwords or to grades or any other student records during the interruptions.
Henry said when he discovered he could gain access to restricted areas of the computer system, he talked to a district official, who encouraged him to discuss his concerns.
But nothing was done to protect the system, Henry said, and eventually officials took action against him.
“They looked at me as a threat. I was in there to help them. I was there to show them that, hey, there’s a problem that should be fixed,” Henry said.
Eventually, “I was getting so much information that the network started collapsing,” Henry said.
Henry said if officials had heeded his warnings, they could have avoided the problems that came to light after an unrelated computer virus attack in 2008.
In the aftermath of the 2008 disruptions, officials admitted they had taken a “minimalist” approach to maintaining the computer system.
The district has since upgraded its system at considerable expense.
“They could’ve saved themselves a lot of money if they had listened to what I told them,” Henry said.
Steve Schlomann, who worked on the upgrade and now manages the computer system, said the system is much more secure today than it was back then.
If elected to the school board, Henry would have limited access to the district’s computers.
Schlomann said board members each have a district e-mail account. Board members also have limited access to the district’s computer system during school board meetings, when they are given laptops to access documents for that meeting. Those laptops also have Internet access, but the rest of the district’s system is sealed off, Schlomann said.
Schlomann said any system can be hacked, given enough knowledge and time. That’s why buildings are locked and computers have safeguards, he said.
Schlomann said it’s possible the school board could ask for more access to the district’s system, but that hasn’t happened.
Oct 23, 2012 at 2:06 p.m.
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Being able to download a bunch of scripts that were written by someone else and run them in an environment that you were operating in an elevated privilege position is not hacking. It is an abuse of the trust you were given. It also is not a sign of great computer skills or knowledge but more a sign of an immature person trying to prove something or gain some unfair advantage in life.
I would like to congratulate Kirk in his abilities to return from a questionable start in life. But to claim this as a badge of honor and somehow think this would be a quality we should be seeking out in our leadership positions is truly a great mistake. You have a LONG ways to go to regain the required level of trust any true IT professional would need from you before being placed in a position of trust and privilege again. Sorry but that the way this world works.
A truly skilled hacker would have been fully inside the system and nobody would have ever known about the intrusion nor would there have been any evidence that they were ever there. Not like Kirk who managed to successfully collected password information most likely running a sniffer application inside the perimeter lines of defense thus allowing him to access confidential information on the systems and causing the demise of the systems resources by not understanding the resources in play.
Almost every hacker who has ever been caught has claimed they were working for the greater good in their endeavors, claiming to actually be a whitehat just trying to show the victims the errors of their ways and protect them from themselves. RIGHT!
Script kiddie = a person who downloads free software that other skilled hackers have written debugged and proven and then uploaded to hacking sites on the internet. These are downloaded and propagated by kids like Kirk around the internet. The real hackers now take control of the BOTS created by the kids and do actual criminal work using the fruits of the kid’s labor.
Kirk I am glad you are trying to revitalize your reputation and community standings but I feel you have a long way to go before you have paid back for your past mistakes. I for one would have a hard time issuing you network credentials as a school board member and making you an authenticated user on any of my customers systems again after an unsuccessful stint in the army simply moving around for a few years and completing some technical training.
Sorry but you reap what you sough. Trust is trust and not easily earned after a fiasco like yours.
Oct 23, 2012 at 1:49 p.m.
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Well put kingrizzo.
Jan 21, 2011 at 12:11 p.m.
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"The district never identified Henry publicly"
guess we know now.
"If elected to the school board, Henry would have limited access to the district’s computers."
AFRAID are you.
Yes maybe they should hire him.
I also think this could be a good idea for the board to have somebody on it how was in school recently. Bosses are always making decisions but are NOT the ones out there in the field knowing WHAT is really going on.
Jan 21, 2011 at 11:02 a.m.
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King Rizzo, have you equally scrutinized the backgrounds of the other school board candidates? Or other politicians you have voted for?
I don't know him at all, and I'm not saying if I'll vote for him or not. I'll listen and read the information available on all the candidates and vote accordingly. I will say, however, that I absolutely won't hold his age against him. And, based on the information currently available, I won't hold the district computer situation against him either.
In regards to your This Old House reference, what specific qualifications are required for the school board? Do you have to have children? Have graduated? Budgeting experience? Management experience? College degree? Minimum age requirement? Whatever the qualifications, are you sure the other candidates have them?
In my book this addresses a huge problem I have with politicians in general. Because they are older, generally have been successful in their career, and have experience, they go into office thinking they have all the wisdom and answers beforehand, often forgetting that they are simply a representative of their constituents. When Al Gore was running for president I got so sick of him saying, "My plan for this....". I don't want someone who thinks they have all the answers. I want someone who will seek out someone wiser, smarter, or with more expertise than them. I want someone who will listen to us, and if prudent, act accordingly. Isn't that the role of the politician, and in this case the school board? To listen and act accordingly?
Jan 20, 2011 at 3:57 p.m.
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"what kind of person does that make you."
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Prudent.
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Say I'm a young man with a questionable past but clean last few years. I see a job ad for a position as a foreman for a construction crew that pays well and has lots of responsibilities. So I go in for an interview. The interview asks, "What experience do you have in construction?" I say, "Well, I live in a house, so . . ." The interviewer asks, "What about your qualifications?" I reply, "I sometimes watch 'This Old House' . . ."
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"Ah," the interviewer says, "So you meet our minimum requirements: passed a drug test, no arrests in past 4 years, can read and write, but have absolutely no other qualifications or experience?"
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I say, "No, but I'm young and could provide a fresh take on the position!"
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"Get out," says the interviewer
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Why should it be any different when running for school board? Just because you haven't been a loser for the last four years after making some decisions that would suggest you were headed that way doesn't mean you're a good candidate! It means you, at best, meet the minimum requirements for someone who should even consider it.
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"Humans make mistakes, you have to live and learn. For people to sit here and criticize a human being who made an mistake and learned from it and how has only benefited himself and others from that point on i feel is an excellent candidate for the school board."
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Again, the argument is he made mistakes before but hasn't made any for a while, so that makes him an excellent candidate? How about some real experience or qualifications instead? Or how about, for a start, he takes responsibility for his mistakes and admits that he was wrong? He hasn't even done that yet!
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" Right there shows determination and leadership."
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Determination? Maybe. Leadership . . . how? Even if that were true, why does that qualify someone for school board? There are a lot of determined leaders out there - but I'm looking for one who knows how a school district, particularly one the size of Janesville's, works.
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"If you can't forgive a young adult's mistakes than what can you."
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I can forgive him without giving him a spot on the school board.
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"I am sure everyone who wrote on here has made a mistake while they were growing up and have overcome that mistake. Let this gentlemen help the school board with his knowledge"
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Knowledge of what?
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"and also let him learn to be a better man, a better citizen for this district, for this country."
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The school board is not the place for someone to learn to be a better man and citizen. I expect someone to be both *before* they get to the board. There are plenty of other ways to do so.
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"Your depriving a 21 year old just because he made a foolish mistake. Shame on you!!"
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No, I'm choosing not to reward him simply for not making further mistakes since. When he goes 20 years mistake-free maybe I'll consider him for school board. But probably not.
Jan 20, 2011 at 12:40 p.m.
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asdfjkl1234, due to the fact this is the first and only post you've ever made to the Gazette blogs, I'll assume you have a personal take on Mr. Henry. Nevertheless, I'll speak for myself on why I will not vote for Mr. Henry. It's not his age or the hack he did to the Craig HS network, but rather his cavalier attitude toward his actions. Others have posted the same sentiment so I won't be repetitive in rehashing.
Jan 20, 2011 at 12:10 p.m.
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People who have a negative thought on this are obviously not willing to give this gentlemen a chance at a great opportunity to help him become even more of a greater citizen than he already is. If teenagers who at ages 16 and 17 can be charged as an adult but you can't call them an adult at age 21 after getting a degree, joining the army, making something of themselves than what kind of person does that make you. Humans make mistakes, you have to live and learn. For people to sit here and criticize a human being who made an mistake and learned from it and how has only benefited himself and others from that point on i feel is an excellent candidate for the school board. The education system has changed a lot in the past years. I also feel you don't have to be a teacher or have a degree to be on the school board. Kirk henry has an associate's degree and is attending UW-Whitewater to pursue a more significant degree. Right there shows determination and leadership. If you can't forgive a young adult's mistakes than what can you. I am sure everyone who wrote on here has made a mistake while they were growing up and have overcome that mistake. Let this gentlemen help the school board with his knowledge, and also let him learn to be a better man, a better citizen for this district, for this country. Your depriving a 21 year old just because he made a foolish mistake. Shame on you!!
Jan 19, 2011 at 5:54 p.m.
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I think the person who explained this best is the one who said "robbing a bank to prove it can be robbed still makes you a bank robber." The school board's biggest problem right now is that there aren't enough people grounded in education on it. Yes, it needs new and younger blood. But maybe we should look at some who has at least finished college and had some real work experience--and maybe a degree that has ANYTHING to do with education? As a teacher (not in the JSD) I would be highly distrustful of a community who put someone who worked against the community into a position of power. Let the kid play with his computers elsewhere, but don't let him affect our kids schools any further than he already has.
Jan 18, 2011 at 9 p.m.
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I'm not going to judge the guy on his worthiness as a candidate for school board until I hear what his positions are on issues like the budget, no child left behind, performance pay, etc.
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However, I am going to judge him on his attitude toward this incident, and so far I am not impressed. I usually couldn't disagree more with Ezoner, but in this case he is dead-on. Read his post again:
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"khenry,
What you fail to understand and grasp (I will attribute that to your young age and lack of life experience) is that the ends does not justify the means.
If you rob a bank to show the bank that its easy to rob that particular bank, you are still a bank robber. If you took advantage of network security and therefore compromised the schools system and private information to show how easy it was, then you are a hacker. Hackers should not be rewarded by being put in charge of the future of our children.
Its just that simple. Not complicated. You have shown a lack of judgement in the past and took a shortcut solution. Theres no reason to expect you would do anything else going forward.
Another example..... if you know how to beat a breath tester for DUI or the tester for the ignition system and you purposely get drunk and demonstrate it and drive, you should still be prosecuted and are at fault for the act.
Trust me... you will understand this someday, if not you will just be an arrogant know it all, that would make you perfect for the US Congress or Senate."
Jan 18, 2011 at 4:07 p.m.
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I take issue with the reverse age discrimination I'm sensing here. I'm a middle-aged man with plenty of life experience, but I, for one, feel the board and government in general could use some youth.
The world is changing so rapidly we need people that can keep up with it, embrace technology, and use it to our advantage. On the surface, Kirk seems like a person that could do that.
This isn't a solitary post, it's part of a school board who need to understand the world through the eyes of our youth. I will listen to all the candidates and vote accordingly, but I view Kirk's youth as an asset that would blend nicely with the wisdom and experience of some of the more tenured board members.
Jan 18, 2011 at 1:32 p.m.
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Mr. Henry did the school district a favor. He did go about it the wrong way, but hey, most of the posters posting negative comments are the same posters that say 17 is not an adult yet. Get over it. He seems like a good choice for this position. I will vote for him. I can not see how the Gazette can leave this open and encourage people to slam this man. Shame on the Gazette.
Jan 18, 2011 at 8:38 a.m.
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People can come a long way in 4 years. I know that I did at 17. Mine however, was more overnight. I think the fact that he came back here and took this step is an attempt to right his wrong. He did something bad (not awful), admitted to it in a public forum, and wants to help the district out in a more productive manner. I think it took big <???> to do it. Glad I don't have to vote though. Then I'd have to look further into his intentions then and now.
Jan 18, 2011 at 7:37 a.m.
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khenry,
What you fail to understand and grasp (I will attribute that to your young age and lack of life experience) is that the ends does not justify the means.
If you rob a bank to show the bank that its easy to rob that particular bank, you are still a bank robber. If you took advantage of network security and therefore compromised the schools system and private information to show how easy it was, then you are a hacker. Hackers should not be rewarded by being put in charge of the future of our children.
Its just that simple. Not complicated. You have shown a lack of judgement in the past and took a shortcut solution. Theres no reason to expect you would do anything else going forward.
Another example..... if you know how to beat a breath tester for DUI or the tester for the ignition system and you purposely get drunk and demonstrate it and drive, you should still be prosecuted and are at fault for the act.
Trust me... you will understand this someday, if not you will just be an arrogant know it all, that would make you perfect for the US Congress or Senate.
Jan 17, 2011 at 9:29 p.m.
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meh, another script kiddie type (asking for Linux help 3 years ago and with what looks like an erased MySpace page) wants to be in charge of school district where he got kicked out of. As a step to your future career in politics? Value Computer has a webpage, with interesting prices for basic work. You'll charge how much for using the recovery CD?
Jan 17, 2011 at 9:11 p.m.
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"I am very sorry for what happened 4 years ago"
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That's an interesting way to phrase it. You're sorry for what happened but you did *not* say that you're sorry for what you did. I think the way you phrased that sentence is exactly the problem that I and others have when reading this story - you still don't seem to think you did anything wrong.
Jan 17, 2011 at 4:26 p.m.
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Ezoner, I had provided information to school reporter Frank Schultz back in 2006 because the district wouldn't listen to what I had to tell them. If you/Gazette readers can remember Me and Frank did a story back in early 2006 about the security of wireless business/residential networks during the information gathering process of this article we traveled around Janesville making stops in several residential and commercial areas. Frank authored this article for the Gazette. Afterwards, we still didn't have enough to write a story solely about the district, Frank stated he would need more information if he was to write a story on just this. I wanted the public to know about the then issues with the districts computer infrastructure so the communication with Frank continued into the fall when as a result of my actions the network began to crash, the district found out what was happening, and I was expelled. So this was not a sole act of myself informing the district of their problems it included communication with the Janesville Gazette and the encouragement of the district official. It was the way I went about collecting the data and identifying the security flaws that was to question.
I would like to say as someone mentioned earlier. I am very sorry for what happened 4 years ago, I said before, I could of never imagined that the information would be so serious I'd end up hiring an attorney and being expelled. I was under the impression I was of some assistance to them, that I was doing them a favor by providing them the information they encouraged me to come forward with. I welcome the people who have posted their thoughts positive and negative on this article.
-----------------------------------------------Kirk Henry
School Board Candidate
henryka30@uww.edu
Jan 17, 2011 at 3:05 p.m.
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He did have other options -- he could have went to the news media. I am certain one of the local media outlets would have thought the story was interesting before he took illegal actions. Honestly -- he deserved jail time not a say in how the district should be run.
Jan 17, 2011 at 6:50 a.m.
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For those that feel he should be elected due to his hacking experience, remember he is not running for school district database administrator. His words are those of arrogance and lack of character in how he frames his "minor" disabling of Craig's computer network.
Jan 17, 2011 at 1:07 a.m.
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QUOTED FOR TRUTH:
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"Also, he said 'I think if they had had a case and could have proved it, they would have charged me'. That's not exactly a proclamation of innocence. That sounds like a questionable rationalization to me."
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Mr. Henry is simultaneously trying to play off his crimes as being nonexistent ("if they had a case they would have charged me) and benevolent ("I was in there to help them. I was there to show them that, hey, there’s a problem that should be fixed"). You can't have it both ways.
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“I was getting so much information that the network started collapsing.” I, too, would be interested in hearing the technical details of this. That doesn't sound like it makes much sense for someone who was there to help.
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I am not impressed by the "changed" attitude - perhaps I missed it, but it would have gone a lot further with me if I read a quote saying something like, "Yeah, it was a stupid way for me to handle the situation - I regret doing what I did." The word "sorry" appears nowhere in the article. Mr Henry comes across to me as still believing he was in the right and the school's network guys were to blame.
Jan 16, 2011 at 1:49 p.m.
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there is a long history of companies in the US hiring the same computer hackers that broke into thier systems... "it takes one to know one"
Jan 16, 2011 at 12:52 p.m.
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Thanks for bringing that up, tpaine.
I also want to say that the boss considered banning comments on this story, but we thought that voters should be allowed to discuss a political matter in this forum, if they could keep it civil.
Those who have addressed the issues without stooping to name-calling or other ill-considered comments are to be complimented.
Frank Schultz
Jan 16, 2011 at 12:15 p.m.
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None of the information identifying Mr. Henry came from the school district. School officials are barred by law from revealing identities of students facing disciplinary measures. Mr. Henry admitted to us that he was the student who was expelled after causing those problems when he was 17. We also have the search warrant document, which names him, to back this up. Police and courts are not governed by the same rules. (State law, by the way, considers 17 to be an adult when it comes to criminal cases.)
The Gazette checks the criminal backgrounds of all candidates, and we have on occasion brought the past misdeeds of other candidates to light. The check is not fool-proof, but we do what we can.
-- Gazette reporter Frank Schultz
Jan 16, 2011 at 11:50 a.m.
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now to be fair the gazette should go back to all candidates youth & investigate..
i thought the district was supposed to destroy all students dis. records.
i will vote for him.
Jan 16, 2011 at 11:21 a.m.
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Prevention,
"Knowledge" of what? Knowledge of youth? Knowledge of how to crash a computer? Great, sounds like a perfect canidate for school board.
Wait here is a better reason to have someone represent our children, "I decided I would make a choice between running for school board or city council. After considering my options I determined as an entry level candidate looking to gain political experience school board would be a good start."
Sounds to me like this guy really cares about kids and is not using them as a starting point for his political career.
Jan 16, 2011 at 8:58 a.m.
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realist, no, that's not the only reason. With his age and knowledge (already), he could add something to the School Board that his elders don't have anymore... youth. There's something to be said for a fresh mind. Across the country are politicians elected that are just as young, sometimes younger, to run a city or town, eventually, bigger and better things.
Jan 16, 2011 at 7:36 a.m.
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I'm with billnewbie. He posted exactly what I was thinking.
Jan 16, 2011 at 6:07 a.m.
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We all make mistakes - Give the young man a chance.
Jan 15, 2011 at 6:38 p.m.
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This is the kind of thing that cracks me up about this town. People are willing to vote for someone who will not only directly impact the future of thousands of students in this town but also the pocket books of every adult as well, on what basis? You will vote for a 21 year old student with limited life experience to contribute to the future of the education system and livelyhood of this town. I am not telling you not to vote for him, but votiing for him because he crashed the school computer system when he was in high school hopefully isn't your sole reason.
Jan 15, 2011 at 4:53 p.m.
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Kirk Henry could not have bought the publicity this article generated.
Jan 15, 2011 at 3:39 p.m.
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I did a little research into this young mans past and he had warned the school on numerous occasions that their computer system was not secure(They DID NOTHING!!! He sent them letter after letter and was put off(HHmmm)? He even sent them instructions on how any Pedophile could access this information from the parking lot and they did NOTHING! The info(pedophiles) would have access to was home addresses (ETC!! and yet the school did NOTHING!!!!!! So I believe instead of expelling him they should have given him A MEDAL!! He may have saved many students from becoming a victim of a PEDOPHILE!! The school did nothing to protect them BUT HE DID as he had no other choice( the school would not Listen! Even after numerous letters AND WARNINGS!!! HE HAS MY VOTE!!!! and SHOULD HAVE YOURS!!~! ( AT LEAST HE DID SOMETHING- I wish the school would have listened and this young man would not have to be PERSECUTED for doing GOOD!!
Jan 15, 2011 at 2:22 p.m.
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Oh, and besides, I'm sure everyone on the School Boards across the country have something, maybe not so drastic as hacking and crashing a system to teach his/her educators a lesson!
Jan 15, 2011 at 2:21 p.m.
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Personally, I find he may be an asset to the school district who's system he crashed to give the educators (who were supposed to educate him) an education!
Jan 15, 2011 at 1:28 p.m.
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This guy sounds smart in a Machiavellian sort of way. The problem that I see with him is that his life experience seems too narrow. He might be a tech-person, but is he well rounded enough to a Board member?
Jan 15, 2011 at 11:53 a.m.
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That is what I said! He should apply to work with the school district. We need someone like him to run the schools program (Skyward). He seems like the right person.
Jan 15, 2011 at 11 a.m.
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Certainly the only way to alert the school system to the vulnerability of their computer system was to hack into it and cause it to crash. How else could he do it?
Jan 15, 2011 at 10:58 a.m.
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“They could’ve saved themselves a lot of money if they had listened to what I told them,” Henry said.
That sort of arrogance and contempt for law is inconsistent with the level of responsibility that goes with holding public office, as well as the enhanced access to public facilities that it confers. If Mr. Henry is now walking the straight and narrow, that's excellent. But I think he needs another ten years to prove himself worthy of public trust.
Jan 15, 2011 at 10:33 a.m.
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doc0430 - You cut your quote too soon, drastically changing the meaning. It read: "For seven days in 2006, “teachers were unable to teach, and students were unable to attend classes RELIANT ON THIS TECHNOLOGY. Staff who rely on this technology were unable to perform PORTIONS of their work …” In other words, teachers who teach computer classes could not teach computers...
Jan 15, 2011 at 10:32 a.m.
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I think this incident makes him qualified for the job.
Jan 15, 2011 at 10:26 a.m.
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my_3_kids, well put. Kirk, if you lose this election, he/she is right about applying for the IT job with the district. You have the smarts for a job like that. Good luck either way.
Jan 15, 2011 at 9:20 a.m.
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Let see..
1) he collapsed a high school system.
2) He Admitted to doing so
3) he approached the district ( a few time alerting them of such)
4) he got expelled..
5) he is running for office in the same district as he crashed.
6) "officials admitted they had taken a “minimalist” approach to maintaining the computer system".
Why should this be a problem... We have gov't officials that did far worse than this in High Gov' t Positions...
Kirk .. I wish you well... I too was in a IT position at one time.. IT was my job to HACK and Crash the system... (and BTW we had fun doing... kinda like "WarGames" with out the threat of "Nuclear war")... We took our finding to the Senior Systems MGR.. and explained what we did ..how we did it,, and who and what it would effect.. People were astounded on what we could do and how we did it.. and got commended on it... back to my 5 bullets..
I would think that you should by pass the election.. and go straight for the District IT position... with your vast knowledge .. I would much rather have you on that side of the fence then waste your time on a district that Shunned you for what you exposed them to.. ( I did not say "Subject" them to) .. You should have opened their eyes ( and gained some validity) to the problems of their system.. but instead they reprimanded you for something they could not see..
Kirk.. OI hope you do well in the election... ( I am not in the the district (anymore -28 yrs removed) but to be able to see someone like yourself make a name for you, in the public sector, ( both educational and entrepreneurship) They should (almost ) look at you as a GOD.. but we all know that will never happen..
I wish you luck my Friend..
Jan 15, 2011 at 8:17 a.m.
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lnewby, I'd be happy to address any concerns you may have. As you know we've personally met me at Jefferson and you got to see for yourself how I present myself.(BTW I'm glad I could answer your question about the Kindle!)
The article states clearly the facts relating to the events at Craig four years ago. I am honest and will continue to live on life on the values of honesty and integrity.
Honest and integrity are the reasons I came forward with the information to the then district's IT official. I never expected that the information I'd gather that fall would prove to be so serious I'd end up hiring an attorney and being expelled from school. I never once did anything malicious with the data or security glitches I knew about. I simply forwarded it on. The article fails to mention this would of been my 3rd trip to see the same official who the previous 2 times thanked me for my information, encouraging me to come back.
This issue is in my past, I have learned, and moved on from it. I am now preparing to hopefully be elected and begin serving the citizens, parents, teachers, and students of Janesville.
If I can be of any more assistance please feel free to comment back or contact me directly.
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Kirk Henry
School Board Candidate
henryka30@uww.edu
Jan 15, 2011 at 6:04 a.m.
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Kirk Henry introduced himself to me the other day at Jefferson Elementary. (Kirk, I am the mom who questioned you about the Kindle.) I was impressed with your education and background. Now, not so much!
Jan 14, 2011 at 11:39 p.m.
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Kirk, I have forgotten what you did to the system and maybe you went the wrong way of doing it. However, that is in the past and you are redeeming yourself for your lack of judgement and please forgive me and I apologize for voicing my opinion, your stupidity when you did it. So, to end this comment, you have my vote. Good luck and once again, I apologize for that remark.
Jan 14, 2011 at 11:22 p.m.
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The story sounds like Mr Henery has become quite a fine young man who has grown up and learned discipline and maturity, I think he would probably be a breath of fresh air that the current council needs.
Kirk you will be more than likely getting my vote in the spring election.
he may make Mr. Scholmann nervous but then again he may be able to help the IT manager with future issues to the cities schools computer systems so the teachers can continue to teach our youth.
Welcome back to Janesville Kirk Henry you sound like a great candidate to me, and I doubt if I'm alone on that sentiment.
Best of luck on your future!!
Jan 14, 2011 at 11:14 p.m.
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For seven days in 2006, “teachers were unable to teach?!?!
That speaks volumes for the current teachers now doesn't it? The computers went down and they could no longer teach? So if everything taught is computer related then why do kids even go to school, they could just go online and find everything they need to learn I guess....
Jan 14, 2011 at 10:08 p.m.
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Tyger02 I would be more than happy to answer your comments:
1. The proof of maturity is listed clearly in the facts of the article. I can add a few things beyond what Frank has written. Within the past 4 years I have received 2 additional awards relating to academics, leadership, and service. I have also taken part in some volunteer work and helped out a few struggling students get through difficult courses in the IT programs at Moraine Park.
2.I know you can trust me as a school board member. As I stated in the article I am a very honest man I live my life by the following quotes "Honesty is the best policy" and "The truth will set you free" In this particular situation, I reported everything I had found defective in their system, I never used the information maliciously, never changed the information I had full access too, never did anything besides the accessing of the data to show/forward it on to district officials who had encouraged me to come forward.
3. I decided I would make a choice between running for school board or city council. After considering my options I determined as an entry level candidate looking to gain political experience school board would be a good start. Being a current college student and recent Craig graduate also weighed deeply into my decision.
I hope I have thoroughly answered your comments If you have additional comments please feel free to respond or contact me via e-mail.
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Kirk Henry
School Board Candidate
henryka30@uww.edu
Jan 14, 2011 at 8:34 p.m.
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Two problems come to my mind that would influence my vote. It seems to be Mr. Henry's contention that he didn't really do anything wrong, that he was "only" trying to show the school system's vulnerability. Yet he claims "I think I've changed". If he didn't do anything wrong, then there wasn't any reason to "change". Also, he said "I think if they had had a case and could have proved it, they would have charged me". That's not exactly a proclamation of innocence. That sounds like a questionable rationalization to me. After all, he was expelled, so the school district certainly thought there was enough proof to withstand any legal challenge to their action.
Sorry Mr. Henry, but even if you have changed, 4 years isn't long enough to prove the dependability and stability of your judgment. Considering the questionable judgment you've exhibited just a short time ago (I realize that you probably think 4 years is a long time), I think you need a few more years of seasoning before you're ready for public office. But once you've had more time to prove the dependability of your judgment, the incident of 4 years ago will no longer make a difference.
Jan 14, 2011 at 8:28 p.m.
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I don't look upon this as a harmless prank by a 17 year old. Should we believe that you have matured that much in 4 years? Obviously the district made the right decision in expelling you. Why should you be trusted as a School Board Member and why do you want to be associated with the same district you harmed 4 years ago? You had no business in accessing the network. that is BS that you were trying to show the vulnerability of the system, but I guess the excuse worked you didn't get arrested. You are damn lucky you weren't arrested you should have been. Yea.. I don't think I will be voting for you
Jan 14, 2011 at 8:18 p.m.
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Maybe Mr. Henry should apply to the school district for a job. He seems to know the computer system. Just kidding. Good luck, Kirk.
Jan 14, 2011 at 6:16 p.m.
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This guy hit the nail right on the head. I think people need to be more open-minded when it comes to computers, and the school board should have heeded his warnings. Another case of paranoia (on the school's part) leading to a major loss of money. I think that the school board was woken up by this incident, and didn't want to look bad, so the expelled this honest student, and then quietly acknowledged that the student was right.
Jan 14, 2011 at 5:58 p.m.
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If all of us were judged on what we did as 17 year old kids-not many would pass a "smell" test.
I have to agree that it is better to judge this young man on his character today rather than judge him solely on his knuckleheaded past.
Part of the American dream is picking yourself up by the bootstraps and making something of yourself. Whether Kirk Henry is elected is another issue altogether-the fact that he is running and investing in himself is a very positive step in his maturation process-most importantly what he did at 17 does not disqualify him from running.
Jan 14, 2011 at 5:31 p.m.
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Hmmm Also Intresting. I know of Kirk and talked with him several times. He has always been a nice guy.
Jan 14, 2011 at 4:58 p.m.
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I have administered computer networks that span the globe for Fortune 500 employers, so I do have at least one question. How is that access to a system all by itself resulted in "getting so much information that the system started collapsing"? I interpret this as logfiles filling up server hard drive space, at first blush, but there could be other meanings. To me, this implies modifications of network software.
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I can understand going to the district with concerns about access, but I can't understand this part, as it does look like somebody doing things to equipment they had no business changing.
Jan 14, 2011 at 4:38 p.m.
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Frank, you have written a very balanced article on what happened 4 years ago. Any member of the public who has questions about this issue or others, I welcome your comments.
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Kirk Henry
School Board Candidate
henryka30@uww.edu
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