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Board asks counsel to research social media rules for employees and shared accounts
Summary
Board members raised concerns about employees' family members posting on social media and the appearance of district partisanship. The board asked district counsel to research whether existing rules can cover jointly shared accounts or posts that name a district employee and report back at the next meeting.
Board members raised concerns about district employees' social-media connections with family members and whether shared or jointly used accounts could expose staff to discipline or compliance issues.
Mrs. Bonsick, a school board member, said posts by family members can "cause havoc" and give the appearance that an employee is not neutral. "If I'm working for the district and my husband is posting stuff on his Facebook, and I'm also on there, and my name is written on those posts ... it should have to be where we are still following the policy and procedure," she said.
A district attorney provided an example from local practice, saying some cities bar employees from contributing to municipal campaigns and that joint responsibility can apply to shared financial contributions. The counsel suggested a similar concept could affect jointly held or jointly posted social-media accounts: "If you have a joint account with somebody ... still disallowed," the counsel said, using the example of campaign contributions in Brooksville.
Board member Mr. Johnson cautioned about free-speech concerns, noting that individuals retain personal opinions and that a relative's social-media posts may not reflect an employee's views. "I don't know if that's an invasion of pride of pride freedom of speech," he said.
The board directed district legal counsel to research whether other districts have policies that cover shared accounts or posts that directly associate an employee's name with derogatory content, and to return with recommendations at the next regular board meeting. A board member suggested counsel report by the 2:00 p.m. meeting time; the board set the next regular meeting as the return point for that research.
Ending: Counsel will research legal limits and drafting options for a social-media policy addressing shared/joint accounts and report at the next board meeting; no policy changes were adopted at this session.
