Pubdate: Fri, 26 May 2006
Source: Chicago Tribune (IL)
Copyright: 2006 Chicago Tribune Company
Contact:  http://www.chicagotribune.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/82
Author: Andrew L. Wang

DISTRICT TAKES AIM AT TEENS' WEB POSTS

Schools Say MySpace Within Their Space Too

By Andrew L. Wang Tribune staff reporter Published May 18, 2006

A north suburban school district could become one of the first in the 
state to adopt rules holding students accountable for what they post 
on blogs or social-networking Web sites like MySpace.com.

The school board of Community High School District 128, which 
includes Libertyville and Vernon Hills High Schools, is expected to 
vote Monday on a change to student conduct codes that would make 
evidence of "illegal or inappropriate behavior" posted on the sites 
grounds for disciplinary action.

"We're really making parents and students aware that they would be 
accountable" for what goes online, said Associate Supt. Prentiss Lea.

He said posting a photo of bad behavior on a Web site is the same as 
if a student dropped the picture on his desk.

Some students chafe at the notion of school officials trolling their 
personal Web sites for rule infractions.

"It's called 'MySpace' for a reason, not 'What-I-do-at-school 
Space,'" said Katy Bauschke, 18, a senior at Libertyville.

"Teachers don't want us to make our own mistakes," said her friend 
Laura Brenner, 18, a senior at Vernon Hills High. "They want to 
protect us, but they're overstepping their bounds."

Lea said district officials will not actively seek evidence by 
looking through students' sites; but when they are confronted with 
it, the code would lay out how they should proceed.

A spokesman for the Illinois Association of School Boards, which 
represents 97 percent of state school boards, said his group is not 
aware of similar proposals in other districts.

"Whether or not it's the very first, it's hard to know," Jim Russell 
said. "There haven't been many, but there will probably be more."

The change would affect all students participating in extracurricular 
activities, including athletic teams, fine arts groups and school clubs.

Lea said 75 percent to 80 percent of the district's 3,200 students 
participate in one or more activities.

To participate, students must sign a pact that says they won't use 
alcohol, tobacco or drugs or "exhibit gross misconduct or 
behavior/citizenship that is considered detrimental to his/her team or school."

The proposed change states that "maintaining or being identified on a 
blog site which depicts illegal or inappropriate behavior will be 
considered a violation of this code."

Lea said officials would treat any incriminating information from a 
Web site as evidence they would use while conducting an investigation 
into the offending behavior.

If district officials find illegal Web content about a student who is 
not involved in activities, they would investigate, contact the 
student's parents and decide whether to discipline the student or 
involve police, Lea said.

Tom Engstrom, Libertyville High's student representative to the 
school board, said he supports the change.

"It makes kids more aware ... of the consequences of their actions," 
said Engstrom, 18, who estimated that 75 percent of students at his 
school use social-networking sites.

Sites like MySpace, Xanga.com and friendster.com allow users to 
create a personal page where they can post pictures and information 
about themselves and network with other users.

Alex Koroknay-Palicz, executive director of the National Youth Rights 
Association, which lobbies for issues such as lowering the voting age 
and abolishing youth curfews, said the District 128 plan 
discriminates against young people.

"I think this is just a huge overstepping of schools' authority into 
the rights and privacy of students," he said. "If they're doing 
something on their own time, that issue is between them and their 
parents. It's not really the school's issue."

But Brian Schwartz, acting director and general counsel for the 
Illinois Principals Association, said legal precedents justify 
disciplining a student for behavior shown on a personal Web site. He 
cited examples of images posted online of students drinking alcohol 
and damaging school property.

He said the issue gets more complicated if the posting is of 
something deemed objectionable, rather than illegal. Then the 
student's right to free speech comes into play. In such cases, a 
district must prove the behavior violates a law or a school rule, 
that there's a definite link of the behavior to the school and that 
the behavior constitutes a true threat to the students, staff or 
school property.

But, he said, students who want the fun of after-school activities 
must be willing to conform to school standards.

"The law says you can't take away someone's right to attend school 
without due process," he said. "When it comes to athletics [and other 
activities] students don't have a right to participate; it's a privilege."

Lea said school officials have noticed the rise in popularity of 
social-networking sites.

News reports of adults using the sites to prey on unsuspecting 
teenagers prompted them to educate the community on the issue. Among 
other things, the district has held talks for parents and teachers to 
introduce them to the sites, and has published tips on how to use them safely.

A committee of about 30 administrators, teachers and parents reviewed 
the codes of conduct earlier this year and decided to revise them to 
address blog sites as a "preventive and proactive" measure, Lea said.

Cheryl Chrysler, president of the Cougar Parent Connection at Vernon 
Hills High, said she supports the changes. With college admissions 
officers and employers looking up applicants' sites, she said, 
students need to be aware that what they post can have consequences.

"If the students are posting it on a public domain, it's open for 
anyone to read," said Chrysler, who has two children at Vernon Hills, 
one of whom uses MySpace.

"What they're posting on their blogs can be used against them."

Many teens acknowledge that the sites are not private.

"It's like going to the library and looking up information on 
someone," said Chris Condren, 18, a Libertyville senior.

Still, he said, it's unsettling to think of teachers looking over a 
student's shoulder.

Vanessa O'Brien, 17, put it more bluntly.

"It seems creepy and weird," the Libertyville senior said. "It's 
weird, but it's legal."
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