The Children’s Advocacy Center of Hampshire County was proud to announce a new partnership with Hampshire Regional High School (HRHS) to launch SMART Mentors for Online Safety, a peer-led program designed to help middle school students navigate online risks.

Through the program, HRHS students in grades 10–12 are trained as mentors to deliver an online safety lesson to 7th graders, empowering younger students with practical tools to recognize and respond to online harm. The curriculum, developed by ChildHelp, a nationally recognized organization, is evidence-based and age-appropriate. SMART stands for Safe, Meet, Accept, Reliable, and Tell. Mentors guide younger students through strategies for protecting personal information, using caution when interacting with people met online, avoiding suspicious links or requests, and knowing when (and how) to tell a trusted adult if something feels wrong.

Online sextortion and harassment continue to rise among young people. Current data show that one in five teens will experience some form of sextortion, and nearly half will encounter online harassment.