Over the last year, students from across the country have approached the Student Press Law Center for help adopting or changing their school district’s school-sponsored media policies. Inspired by the bold advocacy of these student journalists, the Student Press Law Center has developed a toolkit to help every student journalist in the country get student press freedom in your district without delay.
While a state New Voices law is still the strongest tool to protect student press freedom, by taking the actions in this guide, you could see student press freedom for all the schools in your community sooner than you expect. School districts write the rules your school must follow: if your school administrators support student media, district policies can make sure that never changes. If your school administrators do not support student media, district policies give them rules they must follow and protections for you. And, school board meetings can be easier to get to than state houses.
This guide will give you all the basic tools you need to protect and expand student press freedom in your school district. But you never have to go this alone! The Student Press Law Center is always here to help through our free legal hotline.
*Toolkit last updated Feb. 8, 2023