Cancelling the slut prom was a good idea...this is getting carried away with yourself

Submitted by Prometheus 6 on October 26, 2005 - 7:13am.
on Education | Justice | Media
Principal curbs kids' Internet activity
For their own good? Or a violation of free speech?
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 10/24/05
BY LAURA BRUNO
GANNETT NEW JERSEY

When students post their faces, personal diaries and gossip on Web sites like Myspace.com and Xanga.com, it is not simply harmless teen fun, according to one Sussex County Catholic school principal.

It's an open invitation to predators and an activity that Pope John XIII Regional High School in Sparta will no longer tolerate, the Rev. Kieran McHugh told a packed assembly of 900 high school students two weeks ago.

Effective immediately, and over student complaints, the teens were told to dismantle their Myspace.com accounts or similar sites with personal profiles and blogs. Defy the order and face suspension, students were told.

While public and private schools routinely block access to noneducational Web sites on school computers, Pope John's order reaches into students' homes.