By Erica Brettman, Reporter
Electronic communication between students and teachers is no longer private. Copies of texts and e-mails are being sent to administrators and parents as part of a new district policy.
“We have concerns that any interactions between staff and students are appropriate,” Superintendent Dr. Charles McCormick said.
Dr. Jeff Schuler, associate superintendent, issued a policy on Aug. 24 on appropriate use of technology and the problems with private communication and social networking sites, like Facebook. The new policy states that, if faculty or staff need to send electronic communications to students, a copy is encouraged to be sent to an administrator. Parents should generally get copies as well.
“By forwarding all communications between staff and students to the administration, the teacher is protected. The administration acts as the third party, which makes staff/student communications no longer private. The main concern is private conversations that cross the line of appropriateness,” McCormick said.
“Friending” students on social networking sites such as Facebook is also strongly discouraged by the new policy, because students may be exposing themselves to criticism and risks over which they have no control.
“It is a good set of guidelines to help staff understand where they might be putting themselves at risk,” McCormick said.
P.E. teacher Tom Dillivan said he supported the policy.
“I think it’s a good policy. We probably should have instituted the policy years ago,” Dillivan said.
“The administrators want to make sure they know what’s going on between staff and students. I think it’s a good idea,” junior Emily Heimerdinger said.
“I think it’s smart for just-in-case purposes,” freshman Jordan Ginther said.
Legally, the school can’t ban private student/staff communications, but the new guidelines explain what interactions the school considers risky.
“If you’re receiving messages of a certain nature, we want to protect everyone,” McCormick said. “Even certain compliments could constitute sexual harassment.”