Let your students lead.

My one-word summary for Mike Hiestand's presentation about student press law would be: empowering. 

After my school newspaper's second issue onward,  my principal "would like to talk to [me] about the  paper" once it was out. No, not entirely strict prior  review, but he would like to give me feedback,      most of it positive and hugely complimentary to my  students and myself. 

It was the issues where "illegal activities, religion and sexuality issues" came into play that things
got  dicey. 

My principal started, pointing out how he "just wants to make sure sure [his] bases are covered" and that he can appropriately defend the newspaper's publications in case there every is any issue with the district. 

The result of this was that I basically forwarded any stories that seemed to have any questionable issues to him to "have a look at", in essence, prior review happened through the backdoor. 

There never was a huge issue, we never held back any stories or altered them significantly, but Mike Hiestand's presentation showed me two things: 

One, the importance of 100% student-led publications. I am very fortunate of having a very capable and mature staff who are ready for qualified publication decisions and I can honestly say that, even with spare incidents of prior review, it was my students who made final decisions about publication. 

He also pointed out how no district ever has taken action against student newspaper as my principal feared and as I, naive first-year teacher eager to keep my job that I was, let him make me believe. 

Two, and this is the most important thing, I now feel confident in saying that the discussions I had with my principal were never my battles to fight to begin with. I now feel confident in empowering my students to lead these discussions themselves and defend their publication, with me as the adviser taking much more of a background function. 

My students can do that. They're good like that. They should be doing that. 

Mike Hiestand has empowered me to empower them. Thanks for that. 

Stephanie Floch

Taylorsville High School

SLC, Utah