DEAR EDITOR:
For the past two months, Dispatch columnists have engaged in a
heated debate about alleged violations of Gilroy High School
students’ constitutional free speech rights.
DEAR EDITOR:
For the past two months, Dispatch columnists have engaged in a heated debate about alleged violations of Gilroy High School students’ constitutional free speech rights.
Although I don’t want to add fuel to the fire, the columnists’ battle has escalated to a point where I must correct their inaccurate factual assumptions and assure the public that Gilroy Unified School District has implemented free speech policies consistent with California and federal law.
Unlike the columnists involved in this debate, because of constitutional privacy rights, I am not at liberty to discuss students and staff by name without permission. There is much I cannot and will not discuss in this letter.
On Oct. 24, 2003, Cynthia Walker wrote that Gilroy High School students organized a protest against the layoff of a district teacher. According to Ms. Walker, these students wore vests to school that bore the message, “No (teacher’s name), No Peace.” Ms. Walker alleged that school personnel took the vests away from the students, that 1,200 students signed a petition to keep the teacher employed at the district and that school personnel confiscated the petition and threatened the students with suspension.
Finally, she alleged that students posted flyers with the message, “No (teacher’s name), No Peace,” and that yard supervisors took down the posters.
Instead of waiting for a parent or student complaint under the district’s complaint procedure, I assigned a skilled and qualified investigator to meet with the student named in Ms. Walker’s column to determine whether the allegations published accurately reflected students’ experiences, and to provide the student with a full opportunity to voice concerns or make a complaint. No student or parent opted to submit a complaint.
Based on the investigation’s preliminary findings, there is no evidence that any district employee has violated district’s policies, or otherwise violated students’ speech and expression rights. More interviews, however, are scheduled.
Despite the fact that no complaint has been filed, and, to date, the investigation has found no evidence supporting the allegations that have been printed in Ms. Walker’s column, the district is continuing its investigation and will take appropriate action if the investigation finds that an employee violated student rights.
No student has been disciplined or recommended for discipline based on distributing petitions, posting flyers, or wearing a vest with the slogan, “No (teacher’s name), No Peace.” No student has been threatened for participating in free speech. In fact, district records demonstrate that for many years no student has been disciplined for engaging in free speech rights. The district has found no student or other witness who has seen a petition with 1,200 student signatures.
To date, we have no credible evidence that any vests or petitions were confiscated. Specifically, the district has found no evidence to support the columnist’s allegation that Mani Corso confiscated one or more vests from students. In fact, there is no evidence that Mr. Corso had any involvement whatsoever in the alleged student protest. Significantly, no student or parent has asked the district to locate or return missing vests or petitions. The investigation did find that posters were removed because a staff member believed the posters did not comply with district policy and procedure.
Contrary to Ms. Walker’s statement in her Jan. 9, 2004, column that the district is ignoring these allegations, the district has been conducting a full investigation. Because the district must protect student and employee privacy, the district cannot respond to each columnist and to each inaccurate factual allegation.
We take our obligation to protect students’ free speech and privacy rights very seriously. We also take seriously our responsibility to balance free speech rights with students’ rights to an orderly school environment.
EDWIN DIAZ,
Gilroy Superintendent of Schools
Submitted Tuesday, Jan. 13 to ed****@ga****.com
