SPLC institute trains students to lead press freedom fights

Twenty-five high school students from 15 states logged into the Student Press Law Center’s New Voices Student Leaders Institute this summer expecting to learn about press freedom, but they say they took away so much more. After two weeks of training and collaborating with their peers, they’re now equipped with the leadership skills, advocacy strategies and confidence to lead campaigns for press freedom in their states and communities.

Congress' proposed FERPA amendments restrict use of student data for "marketing," while leaving public-records access problems unaddressed

Four bills are pending in Congress to tighten access to student data under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. None of the measures appears to worsen journalists' access to public records from schools and colleges, but none addresses the well-documented misuse of FERPA to conceal campus scandals under the guide of "student privacy."