Home : Student Rights

ACLU Files Lawsuit Against Rhode Island School District for Withholding Public Records (10/05/2005)
PROVIDENCE, RI -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island announced today that it has taken legal action against the Foster-Glocester School District for violating the state's open records law by withholding documents detailing its policies on releasing student information to military recruiters.

Civil Rights Groups Offer Parents Legal Support in Battle to Avoid Segregation in Southern California School District (09/27/2005)
ORANGE, CA -- Four civil rights groups today filed a motion on behalf of a racially and ethnically diverse group of parents who support the Capistrano Unified School District's (CUSD) ability to consider race to avoid segregated schools when drawing up new boundaries for attendance.

NYCLU Unveils Campaign to Defend Students' Rights (09/23/2005)
NEW YORK -The New York Civil Liberties Union launched a major campaign today to arm students with tools to resist unwanted and intrusive recruitment on their school grounds and in their homes.

ACLU Sues Pennsylvania School District Over Expulsion of Middle School Rapper for Songs Written at Home (08/03/2005)
PITTSBURGH-The American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania today filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of a 14-year-old rap artist and his parents charging that the Riverside Beaver School District violated the student's First Amendment free speech rights by expelling the boy for rap music he wrote at home and posted on the Internet.

ACLU Honors Two Florida High School Seniors For Their Commitment to Civil Liberties (08/02/2005)
MIAMI -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida today announced the winners of its Norman Elliot Kent Youth Activist Scholarship for 2005. Two recently graduated high school seniors from Ft. Lauderdale and Gulf Breeze were selected to receive $1,000 each to honor their outstanding work to protect civil liberties, especially the rights of young people.

West Virginia School Officials Violated Student's Rights By Punishing Him Over a T-Shirt, Court Rules (06/01/2005)
CHARLESTON, WV -- A federal court today found that school officials violated a high school student's rights when they disciplined him for wearing a t-shirt bearing an image of the Confederate flag. The ruling comes in response to a lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia.

ACLU Sues PA School District to Stop Official Prayers at Graduation and School Board Meetings (05/26/2005)
PITTSBURGH -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania filed a lawsuit today against the Keystone School District in Clarion County asking a federal court for an immediate order prohibiting school officials from allowing prayers at tomorrow's graduation ceremony and from continuing to open school board meetings with a sectarian prayer.

ACLU of New Mexico Sues School District for Violating Privacy Rights of Students and Parents (05/06/2005)
ALBUQUERQUE -- The American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico today filed a lawsuit against the Albuquerque Public Schools department for failing to properly notify parents of their option to prohibit public schools from directly sending their children's contact information to military recruiters. The ACLU charges that the school district's current practices violate students' privacy and due process rights, as well as provisions of the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

Iowa Civil Liberties Union Defends Right of Students to Wear Anti-Abortion T-Shirts (04/29/2005)
DES MOINES -- The Iowa Civil Liberties Union today blasted school officials for threatening to punish two teenage girls who wore anti-abortion T-shirts to school. The group also offered to assist the students in their quest to continue wearing the shirts at school.

School Safety Personnel Undermine Educators at Bronx High Schools, NYCLU Charges (04/22/2005)
NEW YORK -- In response to a series of recent altercations between police personnel and officials at a Bronx high school, the New York Civil Liberties Union today charged that school safety agents are undermining the education process by repeatedly interfering with the authority of school officials, and called on the Department of Education to address the growing problem.

After ACLU Intervention on Behalf of Student Wearing Anti-Bush T-shirt, Broward School Board Agrees to Amend Code of Conduct (04/22/2005)
FORT LAUDERDALE, FL -- A local school board has agreed to rewrite school policy to give students greater protection under the First Amendment, after the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida's Broward Chapter stepped in to defend a student's right to wear an anti-Bush t-shirt.