Summerville High student asks Dorchester 2 board to adopt student-media policy, citing Hazelwood precedent

A Summerville High School student and lead editor for the school’s weekly news program told the Dorchester School District 2 board on March 10 that the district lacks a written policy governing student-led media and asked trustees to adopt one to protect student journalistic rights.

Solomon Mott said his program, WAVE TV, is “entirely student led and student created” and described an incident in which advisers were instructed that student media should not cover “violence, crime, or anything negative” — guidance he said amounted to censorship. Mott said coverage of a fatal hunting accident had been limited to brief factual statements but drew administrative direction to avoid such topics.

Mott asked the board to create a district policy clarifying the status of student publications and to designate student media as a limited public forum that would provide protections for student speech. He referenced the U.S. Supreme Court precedent that bears on student press rights, Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier, and said a local policy should set clear boundaries so students could cover important matters that affect their school communities while maintaining standards against defamatory or harmful material.

Quote: “Creating a policy to classify these programs to provide protections for students’ constitutional rights to freedom of speech is of the utmost importance,” Mott told the board. “We are not asking for free reign to use school likenesses to spread opinions or fear or hatred. We are asking for a policy focused on preserving and cultivating the minds of both the students creating and those who are watching.”

The board did not take action on the request during the meeting. Mott identified himself as lead editor for WAVE TV and said other student programs in the district — Rawlings Middle School’s Nightly News and a sports media program at Fort Dorchester — would be affected by a policy.

Next steps: Mott’s request was made during public comment; board members did not announce follow-up steps. If trustees choose to act, a policy would typically be reviewed by the district policy committee and brought to the full board in a future meeting for first and second readings.