App designed to help parents track kids' cellphone activity being used in schools

An app designed to help parents track their children's social media activity, emails and texts, is now also being used at schools.

"Bark is technology that keeps children safer online, both at home and at schools. We monitor 25 social media platforms, texting and email," said Titania Jordan, the co-founder of Bark.

"What we're looking for are signs of cyberbullying, sexting, thoughts of suicide and depression, potential drug use and acts of violence," said Jordan.

Once the app detects a problem, it sends parents an email or a text. It also offers parents recommended steps on how to deal with the issues it found.

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"They don't have to spend days going through scripts and looking at a whole ton of streams of emails and texts," said Jordan.

To help parents in their mission to protect children, Bark branched out to schools. Several schools in Westmoreland County are participating in a pilot program. Tim Hammill, director of curriculum services at Westmoreland Intermediate Unit, said Bark is making a difference.

"You can have all the intentions in the world to monitor what your child is doing. Through some of the tools we've had in the past it's been labor intensive," said Hammill.

Before Bark, it was hard for some parents to keep up with what their child was doing and who they were talking to. Now the schools can help.

"They're on Snapchat in their bedroom at 1 in the morning, and when they are absorbing people's best most filtered, most beautiful lives all the time and they don't see the real, raw, authentic, true lives. No wonder there are skyrocketing rates of depression, anxiety, and suicide," said Jordan.

Hammill said the schools using the app are getting positive feedback from parents, and said he would recommend all districts give it a try. Bark's founders are offering the technology to schools nationwide.

"If what Bark brings to us is one strategy, one solution that works, then this is a game changer," said Hammill.

Cox Media Group