STUDENT REP, PRINCIPAL ON CHS STUDENT TWITTER ISSUE

We first told you last week about the string of new Twitter accounts targeting students by gender, race and sexual orientation with comments and concerns about life at Columbia High School.

See the background HERE.

Students have said the new social media avenues have raised good issues and offered a way to express viewpoints, although some contend the comments are hurtful.

CHS Senior Maggie Kritzberg, who also serves as the student representative to the Board of Education, issued this statement on the issue. 

Over the past few weeks, various twitter accounts have been created, addressing different groups of students in CHS concerning the atmosphere, commentary,stereotypes and dialogue that have been affecting many lives in our school community. 

The twitter accounts have generated open and passionate discussion, both organized in a forum and in other venues throughout our school. Many students feel that the twitter accounts have opened up greater mediums of self expression, and have given students a way to ignite a conversation that is, in some ways, long overdue and has not been had consistently or openly enough in the past. 

Others have voiced concerns that it is more difficult to solve the problems within our school without greater understanding of where the comments are coming from- the ambiguity that is generated from having anonymous sources creating and using the accounts is hard for many students to grapple with, while others seem to find the tone and actual content of the tweets to be upsetting. 

Overall, this has been another way for students to share opinions, ones that they feel strongly about. It has been very meaningful to witness the conversations being had, to see them continuing in our school and to see people sharing what they think so thoughtfully. This is another step to addressing problems that are clearly present, and that need to be solved in our schools.

Asked what she thinks of the Twitter accounts, CHS Principal Elizabeth Aaron said via email: "As you know, Twitter and the internet are public forums."