Tom Mooney and Natalia Sieira Millan will present the Connecticut Associations of Schools webinar “Free Speech in Our Schools: What are the Rules for Teachers, Principals and Others?” They will sort out the rules on free speech protections as they apply to public employees, including personal use of social media and other online speech.
Public employees generally have a right of free speech on matters of public concern as long as their speech is not disruptive of the operation of their employer. Moreover, when teachers and others engage in speech as part of their job duties, their speech may be regulated without regard to First Amendment rights. But school administrators understandably have many questions, such as how to define a “public concern” and what would constitute “disruption” that strips away First Amendment protections? With so many employees working from home and social media being such a dominant force these days, it is also hard to know what speech is personal and what speech is professional.
For more information please visit the CAS event page here.