Virginia Student Speaks Out Against School District’s Prior Restraint Policy
Kate Karstens, editor-in-chief of The Lasso, tells NCAC her school's vetting of her newspaper's articles violates district policy.
After Parents Censor, Student Drafts Petition In Defense of ‘Glass Castle’
Renae Roscart, 15, considers parents who argued for the reading list removal to be "pretending that sexual assault and alcoholism isn’t something that youths encounter."
School Librarians And Their Constitutional Responsibilities
What are the legal and educational responsibilities of school librarians in stocking their book shelves?
Vermont School Disinvites Childrens Author Because of Book About Heroin Addiction; UPDATE: School Reverses Decision, Will Carry Book in Library
Kate Messner speaking event at South Burlington's Chamberlin Elementary School after the school discovered her latest book was about heroin addiction.
Portland Resolution on Teaching Climate Change Raises Concerns
NCAC has released the following statement on the climate change controversy brewing in Portland: On May 17, the Public School Board of Portland, Oregon unanimously adopted a resolution to “Develop an Implementation Plan for Climate Literacy,” which concluded with this recommendation: “The implementation plan should include a review of current textbooks for accuracy around the severity of the climate crisis and the [...]
No Student Clubs Affiliated with Amnesty International, Says Ohio High School (Update: Decision Reversed)
A junior at New Albany High near Columbus organized an Amnesty International affiliate group at her school to discuss human rights and came under fire for promoting what some people thought to be an "anti-Israel" message. The school's principal ultimately reversed his decision to "protect" the student "from getting caught up in political lightning rod topics" and will allow the club to form next fall.
Staten Island High School Art Students Told to Clothe their Anti-Rape Artwork
When students at Susan E. Wagner High School in Staten Island produced a photographic artwork critiquing rape culture and the sexualization of young women's bodies, the administration responded by removing the artwork, implicitly sexualizing the body of a young woman. Last week, a photo-collage was removed from a student exhibition in the lobby of the high school due to its [...]
The Bluest Eye Stays in Michigan
A Michigan school board voted last night to keep The Bluest Eye in its AP curriculum.
Michigan Parents See ‘Porn’ in The Bluest Eye
Parents in Michigan are very upset about a Toni Morrison novel being taught in an AP English class.
Canceling Cruz Was Wrong
Students in the Bronx wanted to protest a visit by Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz. But their school pulled the plug.
NCAC to Dept. of Ed: Proposals to Regulate Private Online Speech Would Run Afoul of the First Amendment
Calls to ban social media platforms to combat campus discrimination threaten students' free speech rights.
Pa. Parents Complain, ‘Glass Castle’ Removed from School Reading List
A school in Pennsylvania removed an award-winning novel in response to parent's complaints.
Looking for Alaska Under Fire in Kentucky
Another year, another challenge to Looking for Alaska. This time, a parent in conservative Marion County, Kentucky, is challenging its use in a 12th grade classroom.
Are New Rules Still Targeting Gay-Straight Alliance?
It looks like a Tennessee high school will have a gay-straight alliance club after all. But do the district's new rules for all clubs go too far?
Satire and Swastikas in a New York High School
A high school production of 'The Producers' is altered after parents complain about swastikas on stage.
Victory! This One Summer Back on Library Shelves
An award-winning graphic novel was removed from high school libraries in Florida after the parent of a third-grader complained. The district thankfully reversed its decision.
Hanover Students Stand Against “Beloved Bill” in Virginia
Students are speaking out against legislation that would require parental notification of the teaching of "sexually explicit content" in public schools.
Coalition to Virginia Governor: Veto the ‘Beloved’ Bill
A bill that would require Virginia public schools to notify parents about 'sexually explicit content' should be vetoed by the governor, a coalition of literary and free speech groups argue.
Catherine Ross: “Freedom of Speech is the Engine Oil of Democracy”
Author Catherine Ross speaks to NCAC about schools and free speech: "In many communities across the country, the adults who would like to censor student expression are much louder and more influential that the adults who hope that schools will allow students to learn how to exercise their rights."
Virginia “Sexually Explicit Content” Bill Undermines Public Education
A Virginia bill that would require public schools to notify parents of "sexually explicit content" poses a profound threat to public education and First Amendment principles.
Changing District’s Book Challenge Policy: An Invitation to Censor?
In Florida, a seemingly minor change to a policy regarding how schools handle book challenges could have far-reaching implications.
School’s Banning of Racism Video Raises First Amendment Concerns
A Virginia school district's decision to ban a short video about affirmative action, along with the suggestion that it may ban other "racially divisive" material, raises serious First Amendment concerns.
Racism Video Should Spark School Discussion– Gets Censored Instead
The video, as it was intended to do, has sparked a lively debate. Shouldn't a school seek to nurture that discussion instead of stifling it?
Florida High School Libraries Restrict Access to Award-Winning Graphic Novel
A parent of an elementary school student complained about a graphic novel in the school library. Is that any reason to restrict the book in the same district's high school libraries?
Students Form Gay-Straight School Club. What’s the Problem?
At Franklin County High School in Tennessee, some students and parents are outraged by the very existence of the Gay-Straight Alliance.
Hysteria Over Graphic Novel in Florida
A local TV news outlet is whipping up a frenzy in Florida schools over an award-winning graphic novel.
In Omaha Sex Ed Fight, Board Must Choose Sound Science
A series of proposed changes to the sex ed curriculum in Omaha, Nebraska generated intense opposition late last year, with hundreds of angry parents packing a meeting to denounce plans to teach students about gender identity, emergency contraception, and abortion. Now it is up to the board to decide how and what students will learn.
Treating Anti-Israel Tweets as School Bullying?
If a New Jersey high school is really treating a student's tweets as harassment, they need to cease investigating her words and apologize to her instead.
Florida Bills Threaten Science Instruction and Freedom to Read
Two new bills are designed to empower ideologically-driven activists to shape what is taught in Florida's classrooms.
Is This Student Painting Inappropriate for Children?
NCAC urges a Florida high school to reconsider its decision that a student painting was too explicit to display.
Teaching Huck Finn: A Letter to Friends’ Central School
The reasons a private school in Pennsylvania offered for not teaching 'Huck Finn' are precisely the reasons it should be taught.
California School Faces Down Complaint Over ‘The Family Book’
A parent in Etiwanda, California is complaining that a celebrated children's book about tolerance and diversity is not "appropriate" for a kindergarten classroom.
Threat to Sue Over Transgender Book Reading is Based on Flawed Constitutional Analysis
A conservative legal group's threat to sue a school over the planned reading of a book about a transgender child is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of how the First Amendment applies to public schools.
Reading Jhumpa Lahiri in Idaho
An ad hoc committee in Idaho doesn't think high school seniors are ready to read The Namesake. The school board has an opportunity to reject this recommendation and protect the freedom to read.
Victory for ‘Just One Day’ in Minnesota
A reconsideration review committee that met on December 3 decided in a 7-4 vote to retain copies of Gayle Foreman’s award-winning young adult novel Just One Day in Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan Public School libraries.
‘Just One Day’ YA Novel: Too Racy For School Libraries?
Parents of a middle school student were upset to find their child read the novel 'One Fine Day.' So they want it removed from four school libraries in the district.
Are ‘Ghost Stories’ Too Spooky For NC School Library?
One parent's complaint about a graphic novel has apparently led a school in North Carolina to remove it from the school library.
Religious Group Threatens to Sue School Over Transgender Book Discussion
A conservative law firm threatened to sue a Wisconsin school over a reading and discussion of the picture book I Am Jazz. The district canceled the November 23 reading.
Victory in NJ School: Books Under Fire Are Retained
Two books targeted for removal from instruction at Rumson-Fair Haven High School have been retained.
‘Extremely Loud’: Too Much For Honors English?
For the second time in two months, a school has decided to remove Jonathan Safran Foer's highly regarded novel 'Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close' from a class reading list.