At the beginning of 2014 many new laws came, including one that affects all of the schools in Illinois, including EHS.

Schools can now no longer check students’ social media accounts without parental consent. Bill number HB 0064 states that it is now “illegal for schools to ask for/ demand a student’s social networking password without a cause; requires parental notification for elementary and secondary school students.”

There have been many instances throughout the United States where schools demanded Facebook passwords such as the incident in Mass. where a 12-year-old girl sued her school district, “I mean, it makes sense to me, because even if a student is somehow doing something illegal on social media sites, it’s not really the school’s job to interfere.” senior Krissy Gunderson said. “Law enforcement can take care of that.”

According to the Illinois General Assembly website, House Floor Amendment No. 2 “removes language that requires that an elementary or secondary school to establish expectations for students regarding the use of social media websites, which shall include notification.”

What does this mean for us here at EHS? “This will not change how we work here.” Principal Dennis Cramsey said, “The law is intended to separate personal life and school life. The only thing that might change is the handbook and it might so the handbook will parallel the law.”