School Administrators - Public Relations Specialists or Educators?

In the current political climate of our country, different opinions have been the root of influential movements or controversy. The constitution guarantees the freedom of speech and press to journalists, however this right has been in question for student journalists. Student journalists all across America, work together to publish school newspapers on topics of their choice, but sometimes their activities may be censored. Faculty may have certain reasons for censoring their student’s articles, however this should not be the case. In the Supreme Court decision, Tinker v. Des Moines of 1969, “students should not shed their constitutional rights at the schoolhouse gate.” This decision allowed students to express their opinions without censorship. However this decision was negated in 1988, in Hazelwood v Kuhlmeier, where the court upheld a school’s decision to censor a student’s article. The court’s ruling wrongfully reversed and took away a constitutional right of students journalists.

By censoring students, students are denied their equal opportunity and rights as a human being, to voice their opinions. Student voices can have powerful impacts and expose the truth of problems in their school, daily lives and our country. Scenarios like this may be crucial because administration may hide the truth instead of focusing on real problems happening in the school and finding solutions for them.

Besides informing people and bringing justice to problems that may arise in their schools, students opinions will allow for diversity within the school. Students can bring different opinions and ideas that are important to them. The influx of opinions that students can bring to the table will allow for students to understand and see different points of views, creating more well-informed students. What school wouldn’t want to have diversity and well-informed students?

On the contrary, school administrators may continue to censor their students because censorship their students may choose to write something that may damage the school’s reputation. Though this problem is valid, the purpose of the school is to educate and provide a safe environment for students. These purposes will not be met, if faculty will continue censor students and ignore their voices. If faculty were to listen to the voices and opinions of students, it would encourage an open and safe space for students to bring their opinions to the table. A school’s reputation would not be damaged, if they listened to their student’s voices in the first place. If the only purpose of administrators was to worry about the reputation, rather than their students and the environment created for the students, then the faculty should have jobs as public relation specialists, instead of educators.