Home : Student Rights

NYCLU Hails Decision by Bronx DA to Dismiss Criminal Charges Against School Officials (04/12/2005)
NEW YORK--The New York Civil Liberties Union today praised the decision of the Bronx District Attorney to dismiss criminal charges against a high school principal and a school safety officer who were arrested for interference when they tried to stop the arrest of a 16-year-old student.

ACLU Announces Winners of 2005 Youth Activist Scholarship (04/12/2005)
NEW YORK -- The American Civil Liberties Union today announced the winners of its Youth Activist Scholarship for 2005. Ten high school seniors from around the country were selected to receive $4,000 each to honor their outstanding work to protect civil liberties, especially the rights of young people.

ACLU Exposes Censorship at High Schools in Ohio and Missouri (04/06/2005)
NEW YORK -- The American Civil Liberties Union today took on schools in two different states for violating the First Amendment rights of students who wish to wear t-shirts expressing their support for gay rights issues.

Judges Rule High School Strip Searches Unconstitutional in ACLU of Michigan Lawsuit (04/04/2005)
DETROIT - In a victory for student rights, a panel of federal judges ruled today that a strip search conducted on more than 20 students at Whitmore Lake High School was unconstitutional.

ACLU of New Jersey Wins Free Speech Victory for 8th Grade Webmaster (04/03/2005)
NEWARK, NJ -- The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey announced today that the U.S. District Court has ruled in favor of free speech for students, finding Oceanport school officials liable for violating the rights of an eighth-grade student by punishing him for creating a website on his home computer that included student comments criticizing the school.

ACLU Asks Court to Let Students Join in Kentucky Anti-Gay Harassment Training Case (04/01/2005)
ASHLAND, KY - The American Civil Liberties Union today asked a federal court to let several former students join a Kentucky school district in fighting a lawsuit aimed at shutting down a court-ordered anti-harassment training. The school district agreed to implement the training last year after a federal judge found that there is a widespread problem with anti-gay harassment in the school, where students in an English class once stated that they needed to ""take all the fucking faggots out in the back woods and kill them."" The new lawsuit, brought by an anti-gay legal organization, claims that the training violates the free speech rights of students who are opposed to it.

ACLU Applauds Supreme Court Decision Protecting Whistleblowers Who Report Sex Discrimination (03/29/2005)
WASHINGTON--The American Civil Liberties Union today hailed a Supreme Court ruling that people who report sex discrimination in public schools or other federally funded programs are protected against retaliation under the federal Title IX anti-discrimination law.

Under Threat of ACLU Lawsuit, Providence School Readmits Student Suspended For Photographing Principal (03/23/2005)
PROVIDENCE, RI-Under pressure from the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island, administrators at Central High School today agreed to allow sophomore Eliazar Velasquez to return to school after suspending him for posting photographs of the school principal on a personal Web site. The photographs depicted principal Elaine Almagno smoking a cigarette on school grounds, in direct violation of state law.

Virginia School's Move to Block Gay Speaker is Discriminatory, Says ACLU (03/10/2005)
MIDLOTHIAN, VA - The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia today asked Manchester High School in Chesterfield County to allow gay author Greg Herren to speak at the school tomorrow afternoon as originally planned. Herren's invitation to address the members of the school's Gay-Straight Alliance and other students was rescinded last week by Principal Peter Koste, who claimed that ""concerns from the community"" and possible ""inappropriate"" content led him to cancel the talk.

Following ACLU Action, Virginia Senate Committee Kills Bill Requiring Schools to Notify Parents When Students Refuse to Recite Pledge (02/17/2005)
RICHMOND, VA--On a 7-7 vote, the Virginia Senate Education and Health Committee today blocked a bill intended to require schools to notify parents when their children refused to recite or stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. The vote followed a warning by the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia that it was prepared to mount a legal challenge if the bill passed.

California Company Pulls out of Program to Track Student Movements (02/16/2005)
SAN FRANCISCO - The Sutter-based company InCom announced last night at a packed special school district meeting that it would end its pilot program to require students to wear Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) badges that track the students' movements. The decision came after the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), and the Washington-based Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) urged school officials to end the program after being contacted by several parents.

NYCLU Disappointed With Outcome of Education Funding Lawsuit (02/15/2005)
NEW YORK -- The New York Civil Liberties Union is greatly disappointed in today's Court of Appeals decision on our lawsuit seeking more resources for failing schools throughout the state and outside New York City.

Parents and Civil Liberties Groups Urge Northern California School District to Terminate Use of Tracking Devices (02/07/2005)
SAN FRANCISCO - Parents in a northern California public school district and civil liberties groups are urging the district to terminate the use of Radio Frequency Identification tags (RFIDs) in mandatory ID badges that track students' movements.