A family was charged $1,235 when they requested information about the upkeep and renovation costs of the Idaho State University president’s house. But after a three-week online fundraising campaign, the family raised enough money to cover the bill.
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January 2015 podcast: Protecting off-campus speech on social media
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Attorney Scott Colom discusses his victory in Bell. v. Itawamba County School Board, which addressed students' ability to criticize school officials off campus. Frank LoMonte: Welcome to the Student Press Law Center podcast, a monthly update on legal developments affecting those working in student media. I’m Frank LoMonte, executive director of the Student Press Law Center.Today… Continue reading January 2015 podcast: Protecting off-campus speech on social media
2 newspapers appeal court decision allowing Louisiana State U. to withhold names of some presidential search applicants
Attorneys for two Louisiana newspapers have appealed to the state Supreme Court a lower court’s decision that said the state’s largest public university could withhold the names of most applicants during presidential searches.
Va. committee to study public records exemption for university presidents
Lawmakers in Virginia mothballed a bill Wednesday aimed at closing a public records law exemption that allows university presidents to withhold their work emails and notes.
University presidents in New Mexico push for new exemptions in state public records law
The changes would exempt documents that identity the applicants for any public-sector job in the state, documents regarding alleged civil rights violations and proprietary university research. The amendment would give law enforcement agencies broader discretion to withhold from the public records that could “interfere with law enforcement proceedings” or constitute an “unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.”
Miss. bill could allow schools to punish students for off-campus social media posts
The bill would make it a misdemeanor if students post to social media to “intimidate or torment” another student or school employee. The bill would also criminalize statements — even if they are true — that are intended or are likely to provoke a third party to stalk or harass a student or school employee.
Journalism program among cuts at Delta State U.
More than 80 students and faculty gathered in November 2014 to memorialize the loss of three academic programs in the Division of Languages and Literature — communications/theater studies, modern foreign languages and journalism.
Board structure change at U. Connecticut student newspaper creates alumni backlash
The newspaper’s editor said they made the decision after university administrators said The Daily Campus would lose its funding if they kept their previous board structure because a 1940s state law says student organizations that rely on student fees must be entirely student-run.
Protect students' right to display the American flag despite "hecklers," free-speech icons urge Supreme Court
The plaintiffs in the landmark Tinker student-speech case are asking the Supreme Court to accept, and reverse, a California case finding no First Amendment violation in a school's decision to ban American flag logo apparel that the school claimed might worsen ethnic tensions.
Administrators at Western Illinois U. suspend student editor from student newspaper for selling video of campus riot
The university's vice president for student services said the student reporter violated several sections of the student conduct code, including “committing acts of dishonesty” by representing the newspaper “without the explicit prior consent of the officials of that group.”