The Student Press Law Center is proud to announce that longtime media lawyer Melissa Bevan Melewsky will join the organization on Sept. 28 as its first legal director.
Melewsky to join Student Press Law Center as legal director
News
Stanford Daily wins suit against targeting of international student speech
A federal judge ruled Friday that the Trump Administration unconstitutionally used immigration law to silence the speech of international students, including within student media.
SPLC, FIRE renew demand for SIUE officials to end mandatory monitoring of student press interviews
"We are disappointed you have failed to address our concerns and have not even attempted to work productively with us to improve the atmosphere for the student press at SIUE," a joint letter said.
Our top resources to start the year strong
SPLC, FIRE call on SIUE to end ‘media-minder’ practice
"SIUE must end this practice if it is to live up to its stated commitment to student press freedom and its constitutional obligations as a public institution," a joint letter said.
Student Press Law Center creates internship endowment honoring former board chair Rosalind Stark
A gift from Stark's son will ensure that SPLC can consistently offer the kind of hands-on, paid opportunities that have long introduced emerging journalists and advocates to the front lines of student press freedom work.
With SPLC’s backing, Franklin College students produce nationally recognized journalism for Indiana residents
Incoming junior Olivia O’Neal was recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists for best in-depth reporting at schools with 10,000 or fewer students for her powerful story on Afghan evacuees living in Indiana. The Student Press Law Center was proud to arrange free, pre-publication legal vetting for the piece.
Longtime journalist John Haskins joins SPLC board
Haskins spent more than three decades at The New York Times, where he served in multiple senior editor roles, including as managing editor of The New York Times Magazine. For three years, he directed the Times' Student Journalism Institute, a recruitment and training program for diverse young journalists that placed graduates at the Times and other major newsrooms.
Courage in Every Story
College and high school reporters are filling critical gaps in local news, telling stories that would otherwise go untold. From covering ICE activity in their communities to reporting on campus figures named in the Epstein files, student journalists have shown courage in every story. As our new 2025-2026 Impact Report demonstrates, the Student Press Law Center has been with them every step of the way.
SPLC’s Impact: Ensuring powerful journalism is vetted and legally sound
The Student Press Law Center guided students at the University of Florida before they published reporting on the connection between chemicals and Parkinson’s disease.