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Speak Up! - View Question #417 |
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Question: Does my school have the right to suspend/expel me for what I have on my personal website AND Q. Can I be suspended for what I have on my personal website if it was taken off and brought to school?
Answer: Yes, in certain circumstances. In most jurisdictions, public schools have statutory authority to make rules and regulations to govern the school and discipline students. However, this authority is not unlimited. The Supreme Court has held that schools do not have an absolute power to limit the speech of their students. However, when the content of the speech is likely to cause a disruption at the school, the speech itself may be forbidden. Simple discomfort or anger on the part of teachers or other school administrators is not enough to justify discipline. Recently, another court applied this general rule to a student's personal web page and again decided that, unless there is a reasonable expectation that the message would cause a disruption, the student who posts the message should not be subject to punishment. Put another way, the school would probably be able to punish the student if there is a reasonable belief that, if the information on the website is seen by the student population, a disruption will ensue (for example: the student posts plans for the commission of a violent crime on campus). The likelihood of a disruption, and the justification for discipline, will increase if the material from the personal website is printed and taken to school. The answer to these questions, therefore, depends greatly on the circumstances involved.
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On 04/10/02
Nate from CT said:
ive gotten in trouble for this, had to choose a punishment of
ISS, OSS or satruday detention (3 hours long).
i think if its personal, they should have no right to
make me remove content from my website
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On 02/11/02
jj from AZ said:
i think what someone puts on a personal website should stay personal
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