Some students in Montgomery County are gearing up to testify at the Board of Education meeting Thursday to address concerns over the superintendent鈥檚 response to an concerning censorship of student publications.
Earlier this month, over 150 students and staff from all 25 high schools signed on to the open letter, which addressed a sent by Chief of Schools Peter Moran that requires all schools to designate an administrator to review every 鈥渟tudent publication and school-related printed material,鈥� prior to publication.
Students and staff across the county immediately raised concerns over the memo鈥檚 use of vague language to describe content that administrators were instructed to censor outright. It listed language not found in prior policy, such as 鈥渆mbarrassing or private moments,鈥� 鈥渞idicule of individuals or groups,鈥� and 鈥渟arcasm or teasing that could be interpreted as bullying.鈥�
Upcoming editor-in-chief of Richard Montgomery High School鈥檚 student paper, the RM Tide, and rising senior Abby Lee has been one of the students leading the charge. She says journalism teachers immediately responded to the memo when it came out asking for clarification, but they never got a response from MCPS leadership.
鈥淲e want to know and understand what we are and aren’t allowed to do, and the memo isn’t doing that for us. So, what we want is for a response of just more clarity and of their own understanding of what possibly they’re saying isn’t technically allowed,鈥� Lee said.
Now, several students are planning to testify about the issue at a Board of Education meeting on Thursday. They鈥檝e garnered the support of multiple free-speech organizations across the country, including and the , which have helped guide students through the process.
鈥淭hese organizations have been able to help us have more understanding on what we are and aren’t allowed to do. They gave us major edits on our letter that we published,鈥� Lee said.
In a last week, Montgomery County Superintendent Thomas Taylor called the concerns 鈥渕isperceptions,鈥� saying nothing in the memo 鈥渋nterferes with student journalism or imposes prior restraint.鈥�
鈥淚 get that the kids don’t like it and want free reign. As responsible adults and educational leaders, we have the duty to guide the work of our students as they are developing their skills in a school setting during a school-directed activity,鈥� Taylor wrote.
But student journalists in the county are now expressing frustration with the superintendent鈥檚 response. Ian Chen is a rising junior at Richard Montgomery and an upcoming editor for the RM Tide. He said the response mischaracterized the nature of their concerns.
鈥淲e never asked him to give us free rein, we asked him to follow the law under the ,鈥� Chen said. 鈥淯nder (the act), there are specific instances in which journalism can be censored, and we’re happy with those. We’re happy with those exceptions. We agree that we should not be publishing libel, we should not be publishing slander, but the memo extends far beyond those categories.鈥�
Chen also highlighted confusion over the need for administrators to review student publications because the district already employs journalism teachers in each program to do just that.
鈥淒iscerning what content is ethical, what type of journalism is ethical, that’s not like a skill you can just pick up and learn with a 15-minute training. Not that there has been any training to administrators, just the big memo. Even if there was, it’s something you have to practice, there’s a lot of experience to it, and that’s the whole point of the classroom,鈥� Chen said.
Even though they鈥檙e officially on summer break, Chen and Lee both say they plan to keep working until the memo is revoked or clarified.
鈥淲e’re willing to really just take any sort of necessary steps if the board meeting fails. I mean, we’re considering filing a formal complaint,鈥� Chen said. 鈥淎ll the cards are on the table here.鈥�
You can watch a livestream of Thursday鈥檚 Board of Education meeting at 1 p.m. .
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