Illinois school districts' response to Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier (1988)

The United States Supreme Court decision in Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier (1988) granted local school officials greater latitude in controlling student expression in the public schools.Local board of education policy on student expression was a key factor in the Hazelwood decision. There is a rich body of literature on local policymaking, but there is little research on the policy response of local boards of education to a United States Supreme Court decision.The sample size was 10% of the public school districts in Illinois. Ninety-four public school districts were included in a telephone survey. The response rate was 100%. Those districts reporting the existence of a written policy were asked to complete a written survey and submit a copy of the district policy on student publications. The response rate for the written survey was 91%, and the response rate for the policy submission was 43%. A document analysis was completed for the policies submitted, and 12 personal interviews were conducted. In addition, the chi-square measurement was used to determine the correlation between the existence of a written policy on student publications and six identified district demographic variables.Of the 94 districts surveyed, 47 (50%) had a written policy on student publications and 47 (50%) did not. The document analysis of local district policies on student publications revealed a reliance on a model policy provided by the Illinois Association of School Boards (55%). The only demographic variable showing a correlation with the existence of a written policy was student population.As a result of the study, the following recommendations were made: (a) school districts without a policy on student publications should adopt one; (b) school districts with a policy on student publications should conduct a policy review to ensure that it contains Hazelwood provisions; (c) all school districts should adopt a student publications policy which includes the determination of an open or closed forum, the articulation of curriculum objectives, and a statement of purpose for student publications; (d) school districts should subscribe to a policy service, and (e) local school board members and administrators should be required to receive training in policymaking.U of I OnlyETDs are only available to UIUC Users without author permissio