Twenty-five high school students from 15 states learned how to lead their states’ fights for student press freedom as part of the Student Press Law Center’s seventh annual New Voices Student Leaders Institute this summer. Learn more about what they learned here.
The institute’s message was clear: Student voices can pass the New Voices laws needed to protect students’ First Amendment rights. Now, the new leaders are ready to put their strategies and new skills into action to do just that.
Emma Alves is one of those students. She is a junior at John Burroughs High School in California. She shares her experiences at the Institute and what comes next for her advocacy.
I came about the New Voices Student Leaders Institute from a Google search. I was looking for something that would allow me to grow as a leader, but I’ve gained so much more from this experience.
The first day we met, I was, frankly, shocked at the amount of effort that was put into this (free) institute. They brought in multiple people from the Student Press Law Center, created an informative slideshow, and sacrificed six days during the summer just to put on this program.
I went into this as a broadcast journalist, so not exactly the typical New Voices Leader. I was worried that I wouldn’t be accepted as a journalist, but my fears were quickly dispelled. Everyone, especially Grayson Marlow (the institute’s leader), were incredibly welcoming.
I also quickly learned from this institute. I was educated on matters such as types of censorship, Supreme Court decisions directly affecting student journalists, and of course, the New Voice bill.
We New Voices Leaders have the arduous task of limiting student journalist censorship by either passing this law in our state or committing to direct outreach to students. This task is big — dare I say massive — but this institute, my cohort and SPLC make me feel assured that I can rise up to the challenge. Not just because I know they will answer my message and provide me all the support they can, but also going through our six-day course made me feel much more comfortable.
We had guest speakers talk throughout the days; I was extremely impressed by the quality and substance they provided. They had a recent high school graduate share her censorship story, an attorney talk specifically about the New Voices bill, former institute members who passed the bill in their state, the impetus of this bill — a teacher who fought alongside his students for their rights, and a lawyer who is actively litigating against censorship. The constant rotation of speakers made me feel like this institute was especially important to SPLC. I learned a whole lot from them.
Admittedly, I did not know how frequently students are censored and how to advocate for legislation. These first six meetings have ignited a passion in me to see that student censorship is eradicated (or more likely, heavily decreased). Now, I feel pride when I say I’m a New Voices Leader because, simply, it means I fight for students’ First Amendment rights — freedom of the press.
New Voices is a student-led, nonpartisan movement working to end censorship of student media by passing state laws that protect students’ right to report freely. The Student Press Law Center powers this movement by convening coalitions, educating lawmakers, sharing model policies and equipping students with the training and confidence they need to stand up for press freedom. Learn more about how you can take action to restore and protect student press freedom in your state.