School Districts, Social Networks

School District’s Discipline for Off-Campus Social Media Post Violated Student’s First Amendment Free Speech Rights

Tucker Arensberg, P.C. on 10/21/2022

In re Appeal of G.S., 269 A.3d 718, 722 (Pa. Commw. Ct. 2022), appeal denied, 61 MAL 2022, 2022 WL 2447538 (Pa. July 6, 2022) (The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court determined that the expulsion of a student for a social media...more

Private Snapchat Messages Sent After School Hours Do Not Constitute Cyberbullying or Terroristic Threats

Tucker Arensberg, P.C. on 8/13/2020

J.S. v. Manheim Twp. Sch. Dist., 2020 WL 2508031 (Pa. Commw. Ct., May 13, 2020): The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court affirmed a lower court’s conclusion that private Snapchat messages between two students, making fun of a...more

The Ability of a School To Punish Lewd Or Profane Speech Disappears Once A Student Exits School Grounds

Tucker Arensberg, P.C. on 6/4/2018

B.L. by Levy v. Mahanoy Area School District (“Levy”), Case No. 3:17-CV-1734, 2017 WL 4418290 (M.D. Pa. Oct. 5, 2017). District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania grants cheerleader’s Motion for Preliminary...more

New Legislation Leaves Illinois Schools “Locked Out” of Student Social Media Accounts

Franczek P.C. on 9/1/2015

Recent amendments to Illinois law draw back on rights of post-secondary, secondary, and elementary schools to request or require access to student social networking accounts such as Facebook and Twitter. School districts and...more

Another Circuit Court Recognizes Schools’ Right to Discipline Students for Off Campus, Online Misconduct

Franczek P.C. on 8/27/2015

In a recent case, the Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit joined four other circuits in recognizing the right of school districts to discipline students for at least some off-campus, online speech if the speech reasonably...more

Delaware Changes Online, Student Privacy Protection Laws

Ballard Spahr LLP on 8/26/2015

Four pieces of legislation intended to improve online privacy and protections for Delaware residents were signed into law by Governor Jack Markell on August 7, 2015. Collectively, this legislation will impact a broad range of...more

How Does the Supreme Court’s Recent Facebook Decision Impact Schools?

Franczek P.C. on 6/3/2015

In a recent decision, Elonis v. United States, the U.S. Supreme Court held that in order to convict a man for alleged threats made against his wife on Facebook, the prosecutor must show some level of intent. It was not enough...more

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