Can Schools Discipline for Off-Campus Speech? The U.S. Supreme Court Weighs In post thumbnail

Can Schools Discipline for Off-Campus Speech? The U.S. Supreme Court Weighs In

The U.S. Supreme Court has just released a highly anticipated opinion in the case of a Pennsylvania high school cheerleader who was suspended from the team for profanity about the team that was posted to Snapchat on the weekend. (If you are new to Mahanoy v. B.L., see my previous posts here and here.) We […]

Educator Searches of Private Student Social Media Profiles: The Illinois Experiment post thumbnail

Educator Searches of Private Student Social Media Profiles: The Illinois Experiment

Last summer, Illinois (somewhat quietly) passed a new bullying law that took effect on January 1, 2015. The law includes language similar to at least 13 other states which makes it clear that schools have the authority to discipline students for cyberbullying that occurs off campus (and outside of a school-sponsored activity), when such behavior […]

Cell Phone Searches: Implications for Educators from Riley v. California post thumbnail

Cell Phone Searches: Implications for Educators from Riley v. California

New insight about the issues associated with authorities searching the contents of cell phones has been provided by the U.S. Supreme Court. While this particular ruling deals specifically with the question of whether law enforcement officers can search the contents of cell phones possessed by people who are under arrest, educators can certainly learn from […]