by Mary Macrae ’14

Earlier this month a Syracuse student was suspended for tweeting his opinion about how his upstate New York school district was handling the budget. There were rumors that extracurricular activities and sports were going to be cut. Upon hearing this news, he tweeted that the principal’s position should be cut instead.  As a result of his tweet he was suspended for three days.

A student should have the right to voice his opinion even about school matters without the fear that the school will take action against him.  Trying to silence student opinions does not create a safe and friendly learning environment.  In fact, it creates an environment where dissenting or controversial opinions are not encouraged – exactly the opposite of what a good school should be.