CHS PRINCIPAL ELIZABETH AARON SOCIAL MEDIA STATEMENTS

The following remarks were written by Ms. Aaron with input from Columbia students this week in response to social media choices made by CHS students.

May 4, 2016

I wanted to spend a couple minutes talking about something quite serious. CHS is a great place – it’s a strong place, well-regarded for the services, education, and experiences it provides for its students. It is nationally-ranked and recognized for its overall excellence.

That said, much like any other school, CHS is only as strong and as good as its students and staff choose to make it.  This week, students’ use of social media has brought some of the worst thinking and behavior of our students to the forefront of the work we have to do and negatively impacted many of us.

Social media is private. Filters don’t work. Your posts to “closed groups” or selected groups of friends can easily become public.  This has become painfully clear to some of us in the CHS community since Monday afternoon. 

Words, images, and ideas that you share can and do cause real harm.  Once done, that harm cannot ever truly be undone.

Please know that the CHS administration takes state and federal law, our school Code of Conduct, and Board of Education laws and policy regarding harassment, intimidation, and bullying seriously.

Each and every individual at CHS is expected to act not only in accordance with those laws and expectations, but also to know we do hold you and ourselves accountable to them.

We each have the power every day to work for peace, social justice, and a  democracy that serves and enriches everyone.  Please keep those high expectations and that power in mind when you walk, talk, post, and act as a member of the Columbia High School community.

May 5, 2016

This week the CHS community has learned powerful and unpleasant lessons about social media use and misuse.  In particular, racist and offensive images and words were spread quickly through many of your social networks.  They have also been widely shared outside our community.

Please know that as a community of learners and scholars at CHS, we will not tolerate racist language and images.  Such language and images demean and devalue who we are as students, staff, and teachers, and as a community. 

There is, as these incidents indicate, much work to do here at CHS.  There is nothing funny or appropriate about racist images or words. They do not have place at our school and they do not reflect our values or vision.  Please remember that always, and especially in the weeks ahead as we move toward the conclusion of our school year and graduation for our seniors as they look forward to their lives and success beyond CHS.