Jill Brown, mom of three, has dedicated her career to keeping children safe online and educating parents and those who work with them. 

Brown, who grew up in Westfield and moved back eight years ago, felt compelled to start itsmylocker.com after hearing directly from children about the dangers lurking in cyberspace.

Serving as a youth minister for the high school youth group program at the Presbyterian Church in Westfield, Brown said teenagers confided things in her about their online lives that they were not telling their parents nor their peers.

"I was trying to help them get through what they were going through, so I literally would come home and think about these things that these kids were experiencing on Facebook and online and be sick," Brown said. "So sick about what they were doing, saying, posting and how it would effect their lives and no adults knew what was going on."

Brown said after speaking with school educators, undercover police officers and the FBI she decided to create a website that would teach children from a very early age about appropriate online behavior.

Combining her business background and her personal interest in youth ministry and mission work, Brown created the website in January 2008 as "a training ground" for parents to go online with their children and teach them how to protect themselves. 

The cybersafety advocate said by the time she was able to acquire funding and have the site built, younger and younger children were already logged on to Facebook despite the Child Online Protection Act that requires members to be at least 13 years old.

Brown said she was "disheartened" by the number of parents who allow their children to go online without ever discussing the inherent dangers.

Undeterred, she developed Generation Text Online, a division of itsmylocker.com and has been working closely with school administrators who've sought her help in educating students about cybersafety.

As much as she tries to stay in New Jersey for the sake of her own children, Brown said she has speaking engagements across the country and will appear on a panel in Toronto for social media week.

What sets her presentations apart from others, she said, is that she wants children, parents and educators to walk away empowered rather than overwhelmed and upset.

"I think that's the reason parents aren't involved in their kids Internet life; they're overwhelmed. I have to think that's the reason because I can't imagine why else you wouldn't protect them," she said.

Brown compares teaching children how to behave online with teaching them how to ride a bike. In her slideshow presentation, the first of the last three images shows a child learning to ride with the help of training wheels. The next slide depicts a mother holding on and running beside her child. The final image shows the child pedaling away on his own.

"My theory is the way you raise your children offline is the same way you should raise your children online," she said. "That's really the message. Once people get that, it's amazing."

Brown also said when she asks parents if they would allow their children to go to a concert where they knew there would be 100 sex offenders, all immediately say "no."

"Then I say, 'Why would you let them go on Facebook without first teaching them how to protect themselves?'" she said.

When she speaks with parents and educators, Brown said everyone leaves with a list of 10 things they can do as soon as they get home to help protect their kids.

Brown takes a realistic approach when talking with children and young adults. She recognizes if she says, "Don't go on Facebook," "Don't text!" she will most likely be tuned out.

"I say, 'I know you're going to do it. This is the way of the world. I want to teach you to do it safely,'" she explained.

Brown said she talks to students about not only what they can do to protect themselves but also what they can do to help another student who may be a victim of cyberbullying.

"I challenge them to go out and change something. I challenge them to go out and change somebody's life," said Brown. "That's what I've been able to bring to school districts."

Brown said the best part about her job is when she receives an email from a student telling her what he or she did to improve the quality of someone's life whether by walking them to class, inviting them to their home, or by having lunch with them.

In light of budget restrictions, Brown said she often advises school districts to invite several schools to her presentation at once to help defray the cost.

"I have this connection with kids," she said. "I teach not just kids but educators, principals and superintendents. My mission is to change kids' behavior; the only logical thing to do is to train other people in those positions."

*Note: Brown enjoys her coffee black and piping hot from Robert Treat Deli.