Search

Focusing on the Student Right to Know and Campus Security Act (SRKCSA) of 1990, the First Amendment, and judicial issues related to disciplinary counseling, this document discusses legal issues for student development personnel not engaged in instruction and therefore falling outside of traditional academic rulings. The first section describes the SRKCSA, noting that the mandated and expensive program of publishing and distributing crime statistics has had little impact on campus crime or student behavior. The next section focuses on the First Amendment in the context of an academic environment, highlighting decisions in cases where the right to freedom of expression and association on campus and via E-Mail were in conflict with respect for racial, ethnic, and/or religious groups. The third section discusses judicial issues related to student disciplinary action, reviewing cases related to due process for students and regulation of off-campus conduct, while the fourth section focuses on disciplinary counseling and procedures of referral and efficient withdrawal of students suffering psychiatric disorders. Finally, four surveys of the value of crime statistics are reviewed, indicating a negative perception of the effectiveness of such statistics, and recommendations for increasing awareness of non-instructional legal issues are provided. Contains 50 citations of works, cases, and statutes. A statement on the rights and freedoms of students, a model student disciplinary code, and survey instrument from a study of disciplinary counseling personnel are appended. (KP)

This paper discusses the development of the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) and the increasing trend among federal agencies to reduce printed output and distribute information in electronic form--on floppy disks, CD ROMs, and, since the development of the National Information Infrastructure (NII), the Internet. Many libraries do not have the necessary combination of hardware, software, and requisite experience to enable users to access the electronic documents. In addition, many users do not possess the technical skills to utilize the information fully. If access is ownership, then information access must be ubiquitous. Depository libraries must continue to provide reliable, free, unrestricted access to all public documents regardless of the medium or location. They need to address the questions of who bears the responsibility of storage and archiving and whether the privatization of information access is feasible. Relevant developments in the state of New Mexico include four Internet access projects: New Mexico Technet, the Crown Point Project, La Plaza Telecommunity, and ZiaNet. (Contains 24 references.) (SWC/BEW)

The use of information networks for business and government is expanding enormously. Government use of networks features prominently in plans to make government more efficient, effective, and responsive. But the transformation brought about by the networking also raises new concerns for the security and privacy of networked information. This Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) report was requested by the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs and the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and Finance. The report begins with background information and an overview of the current situation, a statement of the problems involved in safeguarding unclassified networked information, and a summary of policy issues and options. The major part of the report is then devoted to detailed discussions of policy issues in three areas: (1) cryptography policy, including federal information processing standards and export controls; (2) guidance on safeguarding unclassified information in federal agencies; and (3) legal issues and information security, including electronic commerce, privacy, and intellectual property. Appendices include Congressional letters of request; the Computer Security Act and related documents; evolution of the digital signature standard; and lists of workshop participants, reviews, and other contributors. An index is provided. A separately published eight-page OTA Report Summary is included. (JLB)

This paper, which includes a lengthy literature review, reports on a study undertaken to determine the attitudes of preservice teachers (N=1,347) towards censorship. Data were collected using a Likert style survey instrument to sample subjects' attitudes toward the unimpeded flow of information in a variety of circumstances. Results generally agreed with findings reported in previous research, i.e., there is a propensity among the American people to favor the free flow of information while objecting to censorship. However, a significant majority of subjects in one or more subgroups within the sample, characterized by gender, race, age, and grade level interest, favored the restriction of the free flow of information in some areas such as magazines with sexually explicit words and/or pictures; words considered offensive to Christians; and descriptions of how to commit criminal acts. Recommendations included a suggestion that teacher educators be encouraged to study aspects of censorship, including their own biases, and foster awareness among their students of issues relating to the free flow of information. Two tables display data on the percentage of respondents within the total sample favoring the free flow of information and the percentage favoring a free flow of information by respondent characteristics. Contains 14 references. (LL)

The news media's interaction with the criminal justice system and the public--specifically, whether or not the news media's presence inside and outside the courtroom affects a defendant's right to a fair trial--is examined. In 1965, Dr. Sam Sheppard was convicted for the murder of his pregnant wife in their Cleveland suburban home. Since this case received an enormous amount of pretrial publicity, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Dr. Sheppard's Sixth Amendment rights were violated and overturned the trial court's decision. Then, in the 1970s and 1980s, the Supreme Court began focusing more on the media's First Amendment rights. In Richmond Newspapers vs. Virginia, the Supreme Court ruled that for a courtroom to be closed, the trial judge must provide substantial proof showing that the defendant's right to a fair trial would be compromised by the media's presence. The Supreme Court, however, never set a standard that trial judges must follow: trial judges were left to their own best judgment. Experiments conducted by Roberts and Doob (1990), Moral and Cutler (1991) and Riedel (1993), show that pretrial publicity "can" affect a potential juror's or judge's decision. However, Davis' (1986) and part of Riedel's (1993) experiment revealed that potential jurors are able to set aside pretrial publicity and render a verdict on the evidence presented. This dichotomy shows that further research needs to be done, and that research should involve "actual trial participants" instead of "simulated trial participants." (Contains 17 references.) (Author/TB)

Recognizing that escalating concern about campus crime has focused attention nationwide on the Buckley Amendment (a federal privacy law designed to protect education records), this paper examines the legislative history and intent behind Congress's approval in 1974 of Buckley's Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). The paper first notes that this legislation opened school records to students and their parents but barred the release of records to anyone else without the permission of the student or the parents, and that this includes campus police records. The paper then looks at the question of access to information when state open records law and federal privacy rules appear to collide. The paper examines the legislative history and intent behind the FERPA Act. The paper also considers how the Department of Education (ED) has read FERPA and how judges have interpreted its intent in "Bauer v. Kincaid" and other recent cases. In an aftermath section, the paper examines the confusion at many universities after the "Bauer" case. Eighty-four footnotes are included. (NKA)

Many activities that take place in the library, including circulation and interlibrary loan and reserve requests, result in the creation of records linking clients to specific kinds of information. Several groups, including law enforcement officials, have attempted on various occasions to gain access to these records. This research paper provides a broad overview of the legal and ethical issues regarding the confidentiality of library user's records, including federal, state, and court protection for the confidentiality of library records, the status of library records that are part of a public institution, and a minor's right to privacy. The paper also discusses several prominent cases related to the privacy issue. (Contains 29 references.) (Author/KRN)

Cultural diversity raises dilemmas for the library profession, some of which are difficult to resolve on the basis of its absolutist ethical prescriptions. Psychological studies of class, cultural, and gender differences in moral reasoning support a professional ethics based upon care and cultural sensitivity, instead of universal and obligatory principles. Librarians can change their professional codes of conduct, in order to express more realistically their aspirations and community responsibilities, while accommodating social differences. (Contains 19 references.) (Author)

This article begins with an introduction to recent developments in information technology, including investment activities related to the technology in Europe, Japan, and the United States. It then deals with the challenging issues of access to electronic information of the U.S. government, fee or free for electronic information in publicly supported libraries, U.S. federal regulations, intellectual property, and other concerns. It devotes a lengthy discussion to the argument of public goods versus commercial commodities in the treatment of government information. The article covers the issues of the Office of Management and Budget Circular No. A-130 and the responses it has prompted. With regard to the fee issues, the article presents the viewpoints of both sides of the debate between charging and not charging for electronic information in publicly supported libraries. It also reveals the conflicts in the library profession pertaining to fees for information. Finally, the article discusses the issues of how electronic publishing should be treated, including authorship, copyright, personal privacy, transborder data flows, and information liability. (67 references) (Author/DB)

School district personnel files were traditionally considered private. Since the advent of federal and state open record acts, the private nature of personnel records has come into question. All court cases since 1966, in which a member of the public wanted access to public employee information and a personal privacy exemption was raised as a defense objection, were reviewed. Directory information, payroll and absence records, grievance summaries, college transcripts, performance evaluations, employment application materials, resumes, tenure files, reports from private consultants, and settlement agreements were all found as disclosable unless statutory language or court interpretations have created exemptions. Personal information such as medical conditions, family matters, and substance abuse have been defined as intimate in nature and not disclosable. Policy implications school districts should consider include adequate preparation for information requests before they are received and procedures to follow after a request is made. (80 references to court cases) (EJS)

This paper discusses the Cox Committee for English (England) proposals and suggests some theoretical and practical approaches to teaching about the exchange of information through a media education perspective, especially news reporting. Findings are based on research into approaches to media education presented in a series of broadcast radio programs for teachers in England. All newspapers have a common interest in protecting their position or editorial stance in the market; journalists learn quickly to adapt their work to the requirements of their newspaper. Technical features and conventions of specific media define their typical styles of presentation, although survival depends upon how effectively they can communicate with readers. The distortion of society's information base offers a threat that is recognized by Cox. It is suggested that media education by English teachers is a crucial element in providing strategic defenses against this distortion by enlarging pupils' critical understanding of how messages are generated, conveyed, and interpreted in different media. (Contains nine references.) (NAV)