Florida county school board updates student code of conduct, including restrictive policies on students’ Free Speech rights

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The governing body for public schools in the Jacksonville area adopted a student code of conduct with two new policies on how students may exercise their Free Speech rights, including holding protests and filming videos, on school property. 

Key Player

Duval County Public Schools (DCPS) serves over 126,000 students in 204 schools across the cities of Jacksonville, Atlantic Beach, Jacksonville Beach, and Neptune Beach. The board’s seven members review the district’s student code of conduct yearly.

Further Details

On July 11, 2022, the school board approved a new code of conduct that affirms students’ Free Speech rights but places limits on how they may exercise them while school is in session. It was adopted by a 6-1 vote.

The code states that students “shall not be disturbed in the exercise of their constitutionally guaranteed right to assemble peaceably and to publicly and privately express ideas and opinions, provided that such exercise does not infringe on the rights of others and does not interfere with the operation of the schools,” News4Jax reported.

The board said it felt a standardized policy was necessary in light of several recent student-organized protests at Duval County schools, including demonstrations over school dress codes, COVID-19 regulations, and racial inequities.

Students who wish to protest must now obtain written approval from the school principal at least two days in advance of the event, News4Jax reported. Principals may set “reasonable time, place, duration, and manner restrictions” on demonstrations.

The updated code also expands prohibitions on video recording on school grounds. While previous iterations of district policy banned students from filming fights, the new policy bars any student from filming another person while at school, News4Jax reported. 

DCPS board member Charlotte Joyce, the sole opponent of the policy update, expressed fear that the rule risks “opening ourselves up for a lot of problems.” An unnamed Duval County resident told News4Jax that “kids who see something inappropriate happening” should have the right to document the incident.

On July 11, the board also voted unanimously to institute a new policy requiring schools to notify parents if their student wishes to change their name or pronouns, or requires certain support services. Critics argue the policy could threaten LGBTQ+ students’ ability to exercise their right to free expression, News4Jax reported.

The policy mirrors language in Florida’s controversial Parental Rights in Education law, called “Don’t Say Gay” by critics, which is currently facing a legal challenge in federal court.

The school board adopted the policy a day after the release of a Jacksonville Today report that revealed DCPS had removed from its website an anti-bullying video featuring resources to help support LGBTQ+ students. The report noted the removal was the latest in a series of deletions of similar support systems and resources. DCPS spokesperson Tracy Pierce told Jacksonville Today the materials were “removed for legal review to ensure the content complies with recent state legislation.”  

Outcome

Policy changes, video removal receive mixed reviews amid Florida’s Free Speech reckoning

Members of the DCPS community had mixed reactions to the updated code of conduct and news of the anti-bullying video’s removal.

School board chairperson Darryl Willie championed the new policy on student protests, saying parents should “feel better about what we have now than what we had before because it provides more guidance,” according to Action News Jax. An anonymous individual criticized the policy because “allowing the principal to decide what protest to approve opens up DCPS to discrimination issues.” 

Scott Sowell, a DCPS science teacher, said he was disappointed by the removal of the anti-bullying video, calling it “one critical resource that is now no longer available to teachers to help support students.” Dawn Clapp, a parent, said that the removal of LGBTQ+ resources could harm children whose parents are not supportive of them.

“My children’s friends that don’t have as supportive parents, it scares me for them, that they would have [resources] taken from them,” Clapp said.

As courts decide on several controversial state laws on school speech, the status of the new DCPS policies — and whether they will remain in place if the laws are overturned — is unclear.

The policies are set to take effect at the start of the 2022-23 school year on Aug. 29, 2022.