Colleges and universities have long encouraged enthusiastic debate amongst their students. But recently, contentious international and domestic political issues have resulted in school disruptions and made it less safe for students to freely express their opinions. In response, many schools have enacted new student speech rules and policies.

Unfortunately, some of these policies have led to students facing disciplinary action for expressing their thoughts. If you or your child has gotten into trouble with school administration because they expressed their ideas at school, the national education law attorneys from the Lento Law Firm can help. You can contact us online or by phone at 888-535-3686, where members of the Lento Law Firm Student Defense Team can help you navigate this unsettling time.

Types of Speech Restrictions on Campus

Every school has its own rules about how students can express themselves on campus. Public colleges and universities tend to have fewer restrictions because the Free Speech Clause from the First Amendment applies to them more strictly compared to private institutions. That being said, on-campus speech rules typically relate to what students can talk about and how they can talk about it.

For example, a school is likely to prohibit students from making threatening statements to others. This restriction likely applies in almost all contexts, from demonstrations on the campus quad to disruptive comments posted during an online class discussion.

However, one of the biggest areas of contention is how students may express their views. Even though the content of the speech is allowed by the school, there could be rules on how, when, or where the student can speak.

For instance, the school could restrict when and where on campus a protest can occur and require the student to request permission to hold the protest a certain number of days ahead of time. The school could also place rules on what can be written on a poster and where the student can place the poster.

How Speech Restrictions Can Affect Students

Some of the speech rules are common sense or apply to speech that the majority of students will readily follow. However, with so many controversial topics and issues making the news, it's easy for students to get into serious trouble at school, even if they have the best of intentions.

Depending on the infraction, students can get suspended from school. This is particularly serious as it can lead to problems later on when students try to apply to graduate school, internships, or post-graduate employment. These students may lose out on opportunities when they have to explain why there's a suspension in their academic records.

Get Help from an Experienced Education Lawyer

The Student Defense Team at the Lento Law Firm has years of experience handling speech-related student discipline matters. Regardless of where your student goes to school, our firm can work with school administrators nationwide to ensure a fair resolution to a free speech disciplinary proceeding. To set up a time to discuss your case, please use our online contact form or call us at 888-535-3686.