Recognition for Schools that Respec
By John Bowen and Candace Perkins Bowen
PRE S S R I GHT S M I N U T E
N
ew Year’s resolutions
almost always fail, so let’s
not call it that.
Instead, let’s just decide, starting
in 2018, we’ll do a bit more in
each issue or broadcast or post to
support the First Amendment.
John Bowen
John Bowen, MJE, is an
adjunct professor at Kent
State, chair of Journalism
Education Association
(JEA) Scholastic Press
Rights Commitee and
former Dow Jones News
Fund National Journalism
Teacher of the Year. Bowen
has been a member of the
SPLC Board of Directors
and convener of the SPLC
Advisory Council and a
high school journalism
teacher and adviser.
Motivation for this idea came
from the recent selection process
for the First Amendment Press
Freedom Award, an annual
honor from the Journalism
Education Association,
National Scholastic Press
Association and Quill and
Scroll International Honor
Society.
As the JEA Scholastic Press
Rights Committee’s blog
explained shortly before the
Dec. 15 deadline, “This First
Amendment Press Freedom
Award recognizes high schools
that actively support, teach and
protect First Amendment rights
and responsibilities of students
and teachers. The recognition
focuses on student-run media
where students make all final
decisions of content without
prior review.”
Each year, a committee with
members representing those
organizations pours over the
first -round applications. One
nomination must come from an
adviser or administrator and one
from a student.
Schools that pass the first round
go to a second round, requiring
more thorough answers and also
answers from all media advisers
and editors/station managers
at that school. That’s a lot to pull
together, and the number of
schools that realize the value of
this designation has fluctuated
over the years.
The original award—Let
Freedom Ring: America’s First
Amendment High Schools
Award—was sponsored by The
Freedom Forum in the early
years. From a charter group
of nine schools to only one
recipient in 2005, the award
needed new focus, which it got
in 2006, when the three current
organizations took over selection
and promotion. Since then, the
number of applications and
winners has grown steadily. Last
year, 12 schools were honored,
the most ever.
Some have been perennial
recipients—Kirkwood High
School (Missouri) has won 16
times with Mountlake Terrace
High School (Washington)
and Francis Howell North High
School (also Missouri) both close
to double digit wins. Others, too,
are starting to make it an annual
tradition.
Newer to the list are two private
schools, both with advisers
who convinced administrators
that even though they didn’t
have to give their students
First Amendment rights, they
should… and now do. Both The
Archer School for Girls, in Los
Angeles, and Convent of the
Sacred Heart High School, in
San Francisco, have been FAPFA
schools for the last two years.
Even previous winners must
resubmit applications every year
because sometimes a change
in administrators can destroy a
good relationship with student
media.
Some questions on the first-
round applications have pretty
obvious answers:
• Does your school actively
protect First Amendment rights,
including artistic expression by
students and faculty?
• Does your school promote and
support teaching of the First
Amendment through classroom
instruction and activities?
• Does your journalism curriculum
include instruction in press law and