Dear A.C. Reynolds High School Administration: Some members of the School Leadership Team have recently announced their desire to ban the use of electronic devices by students during school hours. Some members believe that students should still be able to use these devices during their lunch period, while others are completely opposed to any changes. …
Personal Email Accounts – BCS Meeting – April 5, 2007 It has come to the attention of the School Leadership Team at Reynolds High School, of which I am a member, that the county’s Technology Department has been directed to ban all personal email account usage for the next school year. The ban would affect…
Dear North Carolina Legislator: As your constituent, I encourage you to support HB853/S874. HB853/S874 is the bill that would prohibit the use of corporal punishment in public schools across the state. North Carolina is one of 21 states that still allows school districts to use corporal punishment. There are many alternatives to spanking a student,…
A few years ago, a high school student named Joseph Frederick was punished for unfurling a banner that read “bong hits 4 Jesus” and subsequently quoting Thomas Jefferson to his principal. He sued, and won, but the principal brought the case to the Supreme Court. The principal (and her lawyers, who include Ken Starr) is…
Every summer NYRA elects a new board of directors, and holds an annual meeting. NYRA’s last annual meeting in San Francisco brought together NYRA members from throughout the country. They heard from some excellent speakers, heard NYRA’s Executive Director read the annual report, and had a good time. This year the annual meeting will be…
For the past several years, DC has had a youth curfew. Young people in the District of Columbia can be arrested simply for leaving their homes. NYRA was recently contacted by Najmah Rashad, who runs Go-Go club events for young people in DC. She serves no alcohol at the events, and has never had any…
Washington Councilmember Jim Graham has introduced legislation that will essentially ban young people from DC nightclubs and concert venues. While Councilmember Graham is pursuing a far more palatable version of the bill, as it stands now the legislation will “prevent the entrance of persons under the age of 21 into alcoholic beverage control licensed nightclubs,…
The third annual NYRAthon began on March 2nd, and will continue through the second of June. NYRAthon consists of two contests. The first is a contest between individuals, with prizes awarded to the three who raise the most money. The second is between the various NYRA chapters, with $100 in NYRA merchandise awarded to the…
Naseem Tarawnah, a Jordanian blogger asks whether the voting age should be lowered to 16 in Jordan: Perhaps one of the biggest aids in encouraging Jordanian youth to get involved in politics is the lowering of the voting age. And I’m not talking about various debate skirmishes in the past few years that finally resulted…
Some forms of corporal punishment may soon be a thing of the past if a new bill introduced in the California legislature is successful. Introduced by California Assemblywoman Sally Lieber, the bill will make spanking in any form or fashion of a child up to age 4 a misdemeanor. Spanking also sends the message that…
