First Amendment Rights On-Campus
Sophomore Cole Mitchell writes notes in Town Square.
As high school students, we don’t often think about our status as U.S. citizens and our corresponding rights. But since Constitution Week is Sept. 17-23, it is important to become informed about the rights we do (or don’t) have.
Arguably the most important amendment to the constitution is the First Amendment guaranteeing freedom of the press and freedom of speech. Especially in a community like Sage Hill, where we are free to express ourselves in the paper, in our classes and at Town Meeting, we often take it for granted that all high school students enjoy its full protection. And they do, right?
Wrong.
Out of the 50 states in our country, only eight allow high school students their full First Amendment rights. California is one of them. Since we go to a private school, we are not under the same protection of the law as public school students. According to Sage Hill U.S. history teacher Jenna (Ridgway) Corliss, “public school students enjoy more protection because they attend a public institution funded by tax dollars.”
But how do these restrictions affect us if we already have a pretty strong student voice?
“High school is a learning environment…with granting students their first amendment rights, we take a risk. Publications adviser Konnie Krislock is the primary censurer of all publications, followed by the administration.
“It just takes one person to write something very offensive that impacts the community negatively,” Corliss said.
Krislock stressed the importance of the student voice. “When I came here, even though we are a private school, Patricia Merz told me that we would adhere to California Education Code section on student rights for public and charter schools because she believed Sage should honor the student voice,” she remembers.
“I believe that my job is to support the student voice and help the students develop what they want to cover and how they want to say it.”
Junior Amelia “Millie” Tanner raises her hand during math class.
It’s worth thinking about. Much like a college campus, the Sage community operates somewhat separately from the rest of the world with its own rules and regulations to protect people and keep the learning environment safe from students who might abuse their rights and say something that harms another member of the community.
Please see the first edition of The Bolt for an article on Sage’s forum for freedom of speech in Town Meeting and publications, as well as on students’ First Amendment rights nationally and where we fit into the puzzle. Also see The Bolt for a discussion of Leonard’s Law, the little recognized protection of private school students’ constitutional rights.
