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ERIC Number: EJ764777
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2006-Nov-30
Pages: 2
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1557-5411
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Questions of Conduct
Lindenberger, Michael
Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, v23 n21 p36-37 Nov 2006
When Jason Johnson, a student at the University of the Cumberlands in the eastern Kentucky hills, posted comments about his new boyfriend on his Myspace.com Web page, he unintentionally sparked a controversy that quickly embroiled the college, the president of the state senate, and Kentucky Governor Ernie Fletcher. The Baptist-affiliated college, whose student handbook prohibits homosexual relationships, expelled Johnson, a 20-year-old theater arts major. Gay-rights organizations and some lawmakers responded by demanding that Governor Fletcher veto $11 million in state funds for a new pharmacy program at the college. Others, including the president of the state senate, defended the school's right to set its own rules for student behavior, pointing out that Johnson knew the rules before he enrolled. Similarly, many legal experts say private colleges have the right to exclude students who fail to abide by the college's moral codes. But others say the Johnson drama underscores the changing landscape of student discipline, in which sites like Myspace and Facebook.com are playing an ever-increasing role. The sites, which count their student users in the millions, are free and enable students and others to easily keep track of their friends--and their friends' friends--through an interlocking system of personal Web pages. This article describes how the popularity of social networking Web sites is shedding light on the increasing complexities of policing student behavior on campus while continuing to respect their rights to privacy and free speech.
Cox, Matthews and Associates. 10520 Warwick Avenue Suite B-8, Fairfax, VA 20170. Tel: 800-783-3199; Tel: 703-385-2981; Fax: 703-385-1839; e-mail: subscriptions@cmapublishing.com; Web site: http://www.diverseeducation.com
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Kentucky
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A