Former KSPA Director talks about student press freedom law

As you embark on the publication of your newspapers, Web sites, broadcast media and yearbooks, your students are likely to begin discussing controversial stories, how to report them and what to present to their communities.

Now is the time to teach students about the rights and responsibilities accorded them by the First Amendment and the Kansas Student Publications Act.

In short, while our state law is the ultimate arbiter in regards to what students are allowed to publish, responsibilities and ethics must also be taught.

When the U.S. Supreme Court wrote its decision on Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier in 1988, it opened the door to censorship of student publications by school administrators across the country.

In the ensuing 21 years, seven states responded by passing anti-Hazelwood student press freedom laws

The Kansas legislature in 1992 passed the Kansas Student Publications Act.

The other 43 states and the District of Columbia operate under the 1988 U.S. Supreme Court decision, which stripped students of the rights they won in the 1966 decision Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School District.

In this podcast, former KSPA Executive Director John Hudnall talks about the Kansas law and what it means to advisers.

He’ll also be presenting a session on the Kansas law at the Hays Fall Conference at Fort Hays State University on Sept. 21.

There are also a great number of lesson plans about First Amendment rights and responsibilities in a post-Hazelwood world.