The William & Mary Educational The William & Mary Educational
Review Review
Volume 8 Issue 1 Article 4
2023
Teachers’ Social Media Use and Its Legal Implications Teachers’ Social Media Use and Its Legal Implications
Martha Crockett
William & Mary
Lavare Henry
William and Mary
Stephanie McGuire
William and Mary
Ayse Gurdal
William and Mary
Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/wmer
Part of the Education Commons
Recommended Citation Recommended Citation
Crockett, Martha; Henry, Lavare; McGuire, Stephanie; and Gurdal, Ayse (2023) "Teachers’ Social Media Use
and Its Legal Implications,"
The William & Mary Educational Review
: Vol. 8: Iss. 1, Article 4.
Available at: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/wmer/vol8/iss1/4
This Articles is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at W&M ScholarWorks. It has been
accepted for inclusion in The William & Mary Educational Review by an authorized editor of W&M ScholarWorks.
For more information, please contact [email protected].
As of 2022, 58.4% of the population uses social media for a daily average of 2 hours and
27 minutes (Chaff ey, 2022). In other words, 4.62 billion people worldwide are getting
online to connect with others, digest news, and seek entertainment. (Pew Research Cen-
ter, 2021). Having discovered the personal and professional benefi ts of social media, ed-
ucators, and more specifi cally teachers, account for a portion of these subscribers. While
social networking sites have the potential to contribute positively to K-12 communities,
such as deepening relationships between teachers and students or increasing accessibil-
ity to professional development, they also present a variety of ethical dilemmas of which
all school employees should be wary. These precarious situations can include teacher
engagement in illegal activity, behaviors that refl ect poor professional judgments, and
inappropriate contact with students (Warnick et al., 2016). School leaders are now ex-
ploring how to create guidelines around teacher social media use that honor employees’
First Amendment rights to free speech, while also maintaining the collective responsi-
bility to create safe and productive learning environments. Therefore, the purpose of
this paper is to review relevant landmark and recent court cases in order to inform the
Abstract
As society becomes increasingly dependent on technology, school leaders must navigate
the evolution of websites, resources, and platforms, including social media, as part of
their responsibility to facilitate a safe and productive learning environment for students.
This article reviews both constitutional and case law as a means of informing educational
leaders of their rights and duties, as well as providing a foundation upon which eff ective
K-12 social media policies and practices for educators can be built. Specifi cally, we off er
an analysis of landmark cases involving the First Amendment and free speech, the delica-
cy around teachers’ roles as both public employees and private citizens, and recent court
cases involving social media use. Additionally, we propose guidelines around social media
use, compiled from both practitioners in the fi eld and relevant literature.
Teachers’ Social Media Use
and Its Legal Implications
Martha Crockett
1
, Lavare Henry
1
,
Stephanie McGuire
1
, and Ayse Gurdal
1
Keywords
social media, school leadership, law
1
William & Mary
The William & Mary Educational Review
2022/2023 Vol. 8, No. 1
development of eff ective K-12 teacher social media policies and practices.
Teachers’ Social Media Use
Social networks have changed contemporary life, in terms of how “individuals play,
socialize, worship, and work” and off er “a signifi cant way to express individuality and to
build and affi rm connection with others” (Warnick, et al., p. 772). These online sites, such
as Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram, off er endless opportunities for teachers
to connect with others for both personal and professional purposes. As private citizens,
teachers can share updates, in a variety of formats, with friends and family. As public
employees, they are able to network and learn alongside other professionals, parents, and
students. However, social media also contests the traditional construct of teaching, stu-
dent learning theory research, and even the organization and structure of schools (Bar-
tow, 2014). While using social media can appear novel and exciting, it is important for
teachers to critically consider both the advantages and drawbacks associated with online
engagement.
Personal Use
Teachers are citizens who have families and friends, as well as hobbies and interests
outside of work, and share the basic need for human connection (Stiles, 2021). Some of
the top reasons the general population uses social media include staying up to date with
news, fi nding entertaining content or researching products, sharing photos or opinions,
and staying in touch with others (Kemp, 2021). The Pew Research Center reports that
seven-in-ten Americans use social media, a statistic “that has remained relatively stable
over the past fi ve years” (Auxier & Anderson, 2021). So, it is not surprising that 71%
of instructors use Facebook for personal reasons on a daily basis, followed by Google +
(33%), Pinterest (32%), Instagram (27%), and Twitter (18 %) (Ascione, 2016).
Professional Use
Educators are taking advantage of social media in a variety of ways, ranging from
distributing information and creating community to revising pedagogy and acquiring ma-
terials. For example, Twitter is an eff ective tool with which schools can disseminate infor-
mation, in 280 characters or less, to parents and students. Because Facebook is one of the
most extensively utilized social media platforms and contains features including “bulletin
boards, instant messaging, e-mail, and the ability to post videos and pictures” (Warnick,
et al., 2016, p. 777), it is an important site for community engagement. Many youth use
Instagram themselves, which makes this popular platform, for photo and video posts, a
crucial space for facilitating relationships and belonging (MMS, 2022).
In terms of professional development, emerging educational trends, engaging discus-
sions, and new tools and pedagogy can all be found on Twitter. Additionally, educators
use this site to explore vendors, goods, and programs they might want to implement in
The William & Mary Educational Review2
their classrooms using hashtags and searches (MMS, 2022). Facebook off ers educators a
space to interact with colleagues, share materials, and follow relevant rms and organi-
zations (MMS, 2022). Schools also use Pinterest to publish their own content, such as re-
sources for parents to assist with homework and student needs (Ascione, 2016). YouTube
not only hosts thousands of videos, outlining classroom activities, product demos, and
training, but also enables teachers to create their own channels, containing class materi-
als and resources for students (Ascione, 2016).
First Amendment and Four Landmark Cases
To date, there have been no Supreme Court rulings that have explicitly responded to
teachers and students on social media. Therefore, administrators must call upon more
general legal precedents when responding to ethical dilemmas and creating new poli-
cies. Three cases in particular, Pickering v. Board of Education (1968), Perry v. Sinder-
mann (1972), and Garcetti v. Ceballos (2006), have revealed some of the nuances related
to the free speech of public employees. Even though only one of these cases involves a
K-12 teacher and none of them is related to online communication, all of the outcomes
contribute to the foundation upon which decisions involving social media regulation are
made. An additional case, Tinker v. Des Moines (1969), established an important stan-
dard around protecting the safety and effi ciency of K-12 student learning environments.
First, the Pickering v. Board of Education (1968) case has helped clarify free speech
rights of public employees, in regards to the connection of the speech to the employee’s
offi cial duties and to public concern. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that public school
teacher Marvin Pickering’s First Amendment rights had been violated when he was fi red
for penning an editorial criticizing his employer in a local newspaper. The outcome of
this case set a precedent for the broad nature of teachers’ rights to expression, as long as
they neither disrupt instructional interests nor undermine authority in a way that would
negatively impact working relationships in school districts. Several years later, the notion
of First Amendment Rights of public employees was refi ned in the Perry v. Sindermann
(1972) case. Here, Sindermann, a professor at a junior college in Texas, was dismissed on
account of his “insubordination,” after having publicly criticized the school’s Board of Re-
gents. The Supreme Court determined that his First and Fourteenth Amendment Rights
were violated, as his right to free speech existed independent of his non-tenure status,
and he had not been off ered due process before his termination.
The Garcetti v. Ceballos (2006) case further refi ned the relationship between public
employees’ offi cial duties and their rights to free speech. This incident involved Garcetti,
former Los Angeles District Attorney, and Ceballos, one of his employees who criticized
the legitimacy of a warrant and affi davit, before facing professional consequences. The
Supreme Court found that the speech in question was made in Ceballos’s offi cial capacity
and therefore not protected by the First Amendment. The diff erence between Pickering
and Ceballos is that the former was speaking as a private citizen about a public concern,
Crockett et al.
3
and the latter was performing public duties. This important distinction in the context of
free speech contributes to the determination of whether or not First Amendment rights
are guaranteed.
Finally, the Tinker v. Des Moines (1969) case resulted in formation of the “substantial
disruption test,” which is used to determine the extent to which the school’s interest to
maintain a favorable learning environment can limit students’ access to their First Amend-
ment Rights. In this situation, students who wore black armbands protesting American
involvement in the Vietnam War were suspended from school. Once the case reached the
U.S. Supreme Court, there was a majority rule that neither students nor teachers “shed
their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate” (as
cited in Schimmel et al., 2015, p.162). Because the armbands did not interrupt student
productivity, the schools did not have the right to suspend the students. School leaders
today can use this same evaluation technique, when monitoring social media use.
In Search of Balance
At the heart of the landmark cases described above is the need to balance teachers’
rights as private citizens with their duties as public employees responsible for managing
schools safely and e ciently. This is a challenging task for both K-12 administrators and
court offi cials, as there is much unchartered territory in this unfolding online landscape.
Freedom of speech is a right guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution, as outlined in the First
and Fourteenth Amendments. The Supreme Court, which serves as the primary guardian
of this foundational document, is very protective of this right and will only curtail it if the
government provides a compelling reason to do so (Ryan, 1988; Schimmel et al., 2015).
Through these four landmark cases, the Supreme Court has established some clarity for
the lower courts, school leaders, teachers, and the public at large on how to balance teach-
ers’ rights and responsibilities. In situations where teachers’ private lives have spilled into
the public domain, the courts have largely maintained teachers’ freedom of expression
over the schools’ need for effi ciency. Rulings in favor of the schools have only been made
in situations where the schools have been able to prove teachers’ speech has negatively
impacted their ability to operate (Schroeder, 2013).
Normally, schools do not regulate off -campus teacher activity; teachers are free to
post and share what they want on their social media accounts. However, once a nexus, or
causal connection with the school environment [is discovered], [the teacher] is subject to
regulation by the school” (Bathon & Brady, 2010, p. 216). For example, one teacher who
posted on Facebook calling her students “chitlins in the ghetto” was eventually dismissed
for her comments (Bathon & Brady, 2010, p. 214). This situation, alongside others, has
spurred discussions about the lack of geographical and time boundaries around com-
munication among school employees, parents, and students. Additionally, teachers have
found that despite the availability of privacy settings, social media sites do not always
guarantee protection against hackers or loopholes (Estrada, 2010). Thus, as schools work
4
The William & Mary Educational Review
to establish teacher guidelines, amidst fi rm legal clarity, teachers must consider potential
risks associated with enjoying their free speech rights online.
How the Courts Decide
The courts have set out a framework to guide determinations, related to the balance
between teacher rights and responsibilities. The rst step involves an examination of
whether school leaders’ actions against a teacher are based solely on the teacher’s pro-
tected speech or involve other actions or behavior. In the case of Mt. Healthy City Board
of Education v. Doyle (1976), Doyle, a public school teacher, was red and subsequently
sued the school district. Even though he had shared internal information with a local ra-
dio station, the court ruled that the many other factors contributing to Doyle’s dismissal
(making obscene gestures at students, cursing students, and violently confronting an-
other teacher) were enough by themselves to warrant his dismissal (Hudson, 2002). His
First Amendment rights related to the radio were protected; however, the other issues
were enough grounds for his dismissal. In other words, an employee must demonstrate
that they suff ered an adverse employment action as a result of making their protected
expression (Younger, 2016).
After exploring whether the action taken against the teacher in question is based solely
or primarily on his or her expression, the courts consider the context, or rather the public
vs. private nature of the speech. If a comment is made as part of an individual’s public
responsibilities, it is not protected as the comment was not made as a private citizen. The
First Amendment does not protect expressions that occur outside job boundaries, are
based on self-interest, involve personal complaints, or injure relationships in the work-
place. In the case of Connick v. Myers (1983), the court upheld Myers’s dismissal from her
assistant district attorney position in Louisiana after she had distributed a questionnaire
expressing personal concerns about her transfer to colleagues. Because Myers’s actions
disrupted the workplace and created a burden in the workplace for her superior, Connick,
the judges decided that her free speech rights had not been violated. This case established
that a matter of public concern can transform into a matter of private concern, when mo-
tivated by malice or personal grievance (Schimmel et al., 2015). The Garcetti v. Ceballos
(2006) case provides another example of the court nding the actions taken against the
respondent permissible, given that he had acted in his offi cial capacity but out of the
scope of his authority (Younger, 2016).
Next, the courts examine if the expression is made in an individual’s private capacity
and if the expression is a matter of public concern. If an individual is speaking in a private
capacity, the Pickering Balance test can be used to evaluate whether that person had inside
knowledge from his or her job. If the information used emerges from the work position,
the speech is not protected in that individual’s capacity as a private citizen (Ryan, 1988;
Younger, 2016). In the case of Pickering v. Board of Education (1968), the court made
clear that teachers speaking on matters of public concern (social, political, legitimate
5
Crockett et al.
news, or issues of interest or concern to the general public) are guaranteed their Consti-
tutional rights to do so. It also required that the state prove that the need to maintain an
effi cient functioning work environment outweighs teachers’ free speech (Schimmel et al.,
2015). To determine if the need for school effi ciency outweighs the employee’s right to
free speech, the court applies the substantial disruption test, established in the Tinker v.
Des Moines School District (1969) case, as well as the true threat test. Substantial disrup-
tion refers to the likelihood of the speech to disrupt the operations of the school, create a
hostile working environment, create issues of safety, and diminish offi ce loyalty and trust
(Younger, 2016). The true threat test is also used to evaluate the protection of free speech.
A threat, or an expression of intent to do or cause harm made with the intent to produce
fear and intimidation to the target (Schimmel et al., 2015), is considered a true threat if a
reasonable person would interpret the threat as a serious intent to cause harm (Hudson,
2002). In the case of Givhan v. Western Line Consolidated School District (1979), the
court ruled that the content, time, place, and manner of the speech must be taken into
consideration when evaluating a threat.
Finally, if the expression is not a matter of public concern, then the courts apply the
geography test. In Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier (1988), the court upheld that
schools have the right to exercise editorial rights over a school-sponsored activity, as long
as it is reasonable (Schimmel et al., 2015). This same principle applies to expression on
school grounds, while off campus expression is generally protected by the Constitution.
Although teachers can exercise their free speech rights more liberally in the public do-
main than in classrooms, they are still subject to the substantial disruption test. If an
issue arises o campus, the school leaders must prove there is a nexus, or connection
between the teacher and his or her ability to work e ectively (a substantial disruption
to school’s operations) (Schimmel et al., 2015). Therefore, time, place, manner, context,
and consequences are all important factors in the determination of whether a school’s
interest outweighs a teacher’s right to freedom of expression. The principles established
in these landmark cases have all played roles in recent court cases related to teachers’ use
in social media. We will briefl y discuss some of the more recent cases in the next section.
Recent Cases
Alongside the rise in teacher social media use, has come an increase in the number of
related legal cases, which have created more direction from which school and court offi -
cials can make future decisions. In these cases, taking place in the early-to-mid 2000s, the
courts have applied the substantial disruption test, considered if the speech was protected
as a matter of public concern, and determined if the speech interfered with the teachers’
ability to do their jobs. The associated outcomes have set the precedent that teachers
must separate their professional roles from their personal activities, student teachers are
evaluated as employees rather than as students, and schools must be able to maintain
effi cient operations.
6
The William & Mary Educational Review
Crockett et al.
First, in Spanierman v. Hughes (2008), Spanierman, an English teacher, who had
created multiple MySpace accounts with pictures of naked men and comments about stu-
dents’ personal lives, believed his First and Fourteenth Amendment rights were violated
when his contract was not renewed (Dennis, 2011). However, the court found Spanier-
man’s online conduct was not appropriate for a teacher, that most of his online comments
were not protected speech, and that his behavior did cause a disruption for the school
(Dennis, 2011). This teacher’s free speech was not protected because the substantial dis-
ruption test determined he had disturbed the learning environment, even though the in-
teractions had taken place outside of school (a nexus between personal life and school
disruption was established).
In the same year, the courts set an important precedent not just for teachers, but also
for student teachers. In Snyder v. Millersville University (2008), Snyder, a student teach-
er at Millersville University working in a high school English class, uploaded posts on her
MySpace page that contained grammatical errors and a picture in which she was wearing
a pirate hat, holding a cup that says “drunken pirate” (Russo, 2009, p.39). Once another
teacher found the post and shared it with the superintendent, Snyder was not allowed to
complete her student teaching assignment, was marked down for professionalism, and
ultimately did not pass student teaching or receive her degree in education (Russo, 2009).
In response to her suing the university, the court found that in her student teacher role,
Snyder was more of an employee than a student, so her speech was not protected, since it
did not “involve a matter of public concern.” (Russo, 2009, p.40) Therefore, the univer-
sity was justifi ed in withholding a degree in education and a recommendation for teacher
certifi cation from her (Russo, 2009). In this case, the courts applied the Pickering test,
determining that the employee’s speech about was not a matter of public concern, and set
the precedent that the courts view student teachers as employees, rather than as students.
Although these two cases represent instances in which the courts favored the schools
over the teachers, Murmer v. Chesterfi eld County School Board United States District
Court, Richmond (2008) off ers an example of a teacher prevailing. In his free time, Mur-
mer, a high school art teacher, made paintings using his buttocks (ACLU Virginia, 2022).
His colleagues discovered a recording of his TV appearance on YouTube. Even though
he was wearing a mask, head towel, bathrobe, and thong swimsuit at his art demonstra-
tion in the video, he was red from his job (ACLU Virginia, 2022). With the help of the
ACLU of Virginia, he led a lawsuit claiming his First Amendment rights were violated
(ACLU Virginia, 2022) and ultimately won. The court sided in his favor, with a deter-
mination, using the geography test, that his art demonstration did not adversely impact
his eff ectiveness as a teacher (there was no nexus between his personal and professional
lives). Murmur was awarded two years’ salary for his suff erings in the amount of $65,000
(ACLU Virginia, 2022; ACLU, 2008) and contributed to the precedent that a teacher can
maintain private citizenship, so long as their personal acts do not impact their teaching
ability and classroom environment.
7
The William & Mary Educational Review
The following year, the courts heard another case evaluating the relationship between
teachers’ social media presence and their ability to carry out professional duties. In Rich-
erson v. Beckon (2009), Richerson, a curriculum specialist and instructional coach, be-
gan posting about the teachers she was coaching, other colleagues, union representatives,
and employers to the degree that they could be identifi ed by her descriptions (Richerson
v. Beckon, 2009). These negative and personal posts diminished trust with the employees
she mentored and disrupted her coaching abilities. When Beckon, the Director of HR,
moved her back to the classroom as a teacher, Richerson argued her First Amendment
rights were infringed. However, the court ruled in favor of the school district, citing her
social media use as interference to her work. Again, the courts used ability to perform
eff ectively as a barometer for judgment when contemplating an individual’s First Amend-
ment rights.
In Payne v. Barrow (2009), Payne, who taught high school English, was asked to
resign, after a parent had reported her social media posts in which she was “holding a
beer in an Irish puband had “used the word bitch” (O’Connor & Schmidt, 2015, p.7).
Although her account was set to private, Payne did honor the principal’s request for her
to leave, based on her naivety and lack of understanding about her rights. Her resignation
without question underlines the importance of teachers taking caution to know how they
can respond in these situations. Later, the court ruled in favor of the school district be-
cause she was non-tenured (O’Connor & Schmidt, 2015).
A few years later, another teacher used harsh language, which led to an even larg-
er disruption than one parent phone call. In Jennifer O’Brien v. State Operated School
District of the City of Paterson NJ Superior Court, Appellate Division (2013), O’Brien,
a rst grade teacher, posted “I’m not a teacher I’m a warden for future criminals! They
had a scared straight program in school why couldn’t [I] bring [fi rst] graders?” Her action
led to one parent request to remove their child from the school, at least 12 more angry
parent telephone calls, and a protest of an additional 20-25 outside of the school. Rather
than honor O’Brien’s belief that this was a public concern, the court found in favor of the
school district and removed her from her tenured position because the ability to maintain
an effi cient operation of the school outweighed concerns about the students’ behaviors.
In this case, the substantial disruption test was applied, and the school district prevailed.
Another instance concerning job eff ectiveness occurred in Shepherd v. McGee (2013).
Shepherd, a child protective services worker, posted negative comments about individ-
uals who were receiving assistance (Holland & Knight LLP, n.d.). The court found her
comments to negatively impact her e ectiveness as a CPS worker and her ability to be a
witness in court (Holland & Knight LLP, n.d.). Because her comments met the require-
ments of the substantial disruption test, the case was settled in summary judgment in
favor of McGee, the manager of Human Resources, not Shepherd, the child protective
services worker.
8
Figure 1
Framework for Assessing Social Media Posts Based Our Synthesis of Court Cases
The courts cycled back to the use of the Pickering balancing test in Munroe v. Central
Bucks School District (2014). In this case, Munroe was a high school English teacher
who posted negative comments about her students on her online blog. She posted a list
of comments that she thought should be part of the automatic report card choices con-
taining off ensive language and demeaning comments, which resulted in her termination.
Although she argued this infringed on her First Amendment rights, the court found in
favor of the school district, thanks to the Pickering balancing test, as Munroe’s blog posts
were disruptive enough to upset the learning environment.
Implications
Providing a safe learning environment for all students is one of the top priorities of
K-12 educators. With the rapid evolution of technology, school offi cials are faced with the
challenge of not only monitoring teacher communication, but also evaluating its eff ects
on student learning (Bathon & Brady, 2010). As teachers explore the boundaries of social
media as a means of building rapport with students, sharing information with families,
and enhancing their pedagogies, they must carefully weigh their rights as private citi-
zens against their duties as public offi cials. Teachers should take into consideration past
court cases, existing school and district policies, and research-based recommendations
Crockett et al.
9
The William & Mary Educational Review
on social media use to ensure both their Internet safety and their job security. It is the
responsibility of administrators to “assist teachers in navigating these complex waters
while still protecting the integrity and safety of the school” (Bathon & Brady, 2010, p.
223). Although a handful of cases have made it to the courtroom, thousands of others
have been resolved within schools; therefore, the wisdom of school offi cials should not be
discredited (Bathon & Brandy, 2010).
Recommendations
While school districts cannot completely forbid teachers from using social media, they
can take steps to create and implement guidelines around appropriate behaviors. Even
without U.S. Supreme Court rulings on cases on this speci c topic, K-12 leaders can call
upon landmark and lower court rulings as a compass for determining when to defend
employees’ speech and when to protect the school community. Figure 1 below provides
an original guide to help leaders in the decision-making process should they have a so-
cial media issue to address. First, school leaders should provide clear social media policy
guidelines and communicate to staff at all levels. In order to increase teacher awareness,
it would be helpful to involve them in the creation of the policy and positive social me-
dia use advocacy groups at schools. School leaders should also off er trainings, perhaps
during teacher orientation, on teachers’ rights as citizens and responsibilities as employ-
ees (Russo, 2009). School districts can consider installing fi rewalls and limiting access to
these sites from district-owned systems, and requiring employees to sign acceptable use
policies (Russo, 2009).
More teacher-specifi c recommendations from the literature include not posting about
students or venting on the Internet, being familiar with the school district’s social media
policy and state laws, and turning on social media privacy settings, even though privacy is
not always guaranteed (O’Connor & Schmidt, 2015). Additionally, it is important to com-
municate professional expectations with student teachers. Practitioners and school leaders
discussed strategies and valuable practices in advising teachers on how to use social media
appropriately and how not to use social media which might lead to the detriment of a career.
A summary of these suggestions can be found in Appendix A. More research exploring the
impact of social media on teaching strategies, community relationships, learning outcomes,
etc. is needed to inform the development of policies around technology use in K-12 schools.
Conclusion
The evolution of technology, and more specifi cally social media, has certainly present-
ed a variety of new encounters through which all K-12 stakeholders have begun to navi-
gate. Although there are benefi ts of online interactions to student learning, there are also
various instances involving the misuse of technology that have resulted in the disruption
of learning environments. The most severe cases have resulted in teacher discipline, or
even disputes in the courts. As educators forge ahead into the 21st century, they have legal
10
precedent, formal research, and lived experience with which they can continue to assess
and determine the role of social media in K-12 schools.
References
Ascione, L. (2016, December 12). 14 surprising facts about educators’ social me-
dia use. eSchool News. https://www.eschoolnews.com/district-manage-
ment/2016/07/29/14-facts-about-educators-social-media-use/
ACLU Virginia. (2022). Murmer v. Chesterfi eld County School Board. https://www.
acluva.org/en/cases/murmer-v-chesterfi eld-county-school-board
ACLU. (2008). Fired art teacher wins $65,000 settlement from Chesterfi eld County
School Board. https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/fi red-art-teacher-wins-65000-
settlement-chesterfi eld-county-school-board
Auxier, B. & Anderson, M. (2022). Social media use in 2021. Pew Research Center.
https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2021/04/07/social-media-use-in-2021/
Bartow, S. (2014). Teaching with social media: Disrupting present day public education.
Educational Studies, 50(1), 36-64.
Bathon, J.M. & Brady, K.P. (2010). Teacher free speech and expression in a digital age:
A legal analysis. NASSP Bulletin, 94(3), 213-226.
Chaff ey, D. (2022). Social media statistics research summary 2022. Smart Insights.
https://www.smartinsights.com/social-media-marketing/social-media-strategy/
new-global-social-media-research/
Connick v. Myers, 461 U.S. 138 (1983). https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/
us/461/138/
Dennis, C.M. (2011). Legal implications of employee social media use. Massachusetts
Law Review, 93(4), 380-395.
Estrada, A. (2010). Saving face from Facebook: Arriving at a compromise between
schools’ concerns with teacher social networking and teachers’ fi rst amendment
rights. Thomas Jeff erson Law Review, 32, 283-312.
Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier, 484 U.S. 260, 108 S. Ct. 562, 98 L. Ed. 2d 592
(1988). shorturl.at/ioprZ
Holland & Knight LLP. (2013). First Amendment does not prevent state from fi ring
employee for derogatory Facebook comments. Lexology. https://www.lexology.com/
library/detail.aspx?g=9c2f7053-cc19-408e-b76b-b3d5d474598e.
Hudson, D. (2002). Balancing act: Public employees and free speech. First Reports,
3(2), 1–41.
Kemp, S. (2021). Digital 2021: the latest insights into the ‘state of digital.’ We Are Social
UK. https://wearesocial.com/uk/blog/2021/01/digital-2021-the-latest-insights-in-
to-the-state-of-digital/
MMS. (2022). 6 social media platforms & how educators are using them. MMS Educa-
tion. https://www.mmseducation.com/6-social-media-platforms-educators-using/
Crockett et al.
11
The William & Mary Educational Review
Mt. Healthy City School District Board of Education v. Doyle, 429 U.S. 274 (1976).
https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/429/274/
Munroe v. Cent. Bucks Sch. Dist., 34 F. Supp. 3d 532 (E.D. Pa. 2014). https://casetext.
com/case/munroe-v-cent-bucks-sch-dist
Murmer v. Chesterfi eld County School Board, 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (E.D. VA. 2008). https://
www.acluva.org/en/cases/murmer-v-chesterfi eld-county-school-board
ACLU. (2008). Fired Art Teacher wins $65,000 settlement from Chesterfi eld County
School Board. https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/fi red-art-teacher-wins-65000-
settlement-chesterfi eld-county-school-board
Garcetti v. Cabellos. 547 US 410 (2006). https://www.oyez.org/cases/2005/04-473
O’Brien v. State Operated School District of the City of Paterson. 2013 WL 132508 (App.
Div. 2013). https://law.justia.com/cases/new-jersey/appellate-division-unpub-
lished/2013/a2452-11.html
O’Connor, K. W., & Schmidt, G. B. (2015). “Facebook Fired”: Legal standards for social
media–based terminations of K-12 public school teachers. SAGE Open, 5(1).
Payne v. Barrow County School District. (2009). Civil Case No. 09CV-3038-X (Super. Ct.
Ga.).
Perry v. Sindermann. 408 US 593 (1972). https://www.oyez.org/cases/1971/70-36
Pickering v. Board of Education. 391 US 563 (1968). https://www.oyez.org/cases/1967/510
Fulmer, E. (2010). Privacy expectations and protections for teacher in the internet age.
Duke Law & Technology Review, 2010(14), 23–27.
Pew Research Center. (2021, April 17). Social media fact sheet. https://www.pewresearch.
org/internet/fact-sheet/social-media/
Richerson v. Beckon, 337 F. Appx. 637 (9th Cir. 2009). https://casetext.com/case/rich-
erson-v-beckon-1
Russo, C.J. (2009, April). Social networking sites and the free speech rights of school em-
ployees. School Business Aff airs, 75(4), 38-41.
Ryan, J. M. (1988). Teacher free speech in the public schools: Just when you thought it
was safe to talk . . . Nebraska Law Review, 67(3), 695–717.
Schimmel, D., Stellman, L., Conlon, C., & Fischer, L. (2015). Teachers and the law (9th
ed.). Pearson.
Schroeder, M. (2013). Keeping the “free” in teacher speech rights: Protecting teachers and
their use of social media to communicate with students beyond the schoolhouse gates.
Richmond Journal of Law and Technology, 19(2), 1–128.
Shepherd v. McGhee 2013 U.S. Dist. 986 F. Supp. 2d 1211 (D. Or. 2013). https://casetext.
com/case/shepherd-v-mcgee
Snyder v. Millersville University, 2008 WL 5093140 (E.D. Pa. 2008). https://docs.justia.
com/cases/federal/district-courts/pennsylvania/paedce/2:2007cv01660/228127/39
Spanierman v. Hughes, 576 F.Supp.2d 292 (Dist. CT. Con. 2008). https://casetext.com/
case/spanierman-v-hughes
12
Crockett et al.
13
Stiles, K. (2021, November 14). The importance of connection. PsychCentral. https://
psychcentral.com/lib/the-importance-of-connection
Tinker v. Des Moines School Dist. 393 US 503 (1969). https://www.oyez.org/cas-
es/1968/21
Warnick, B.R., Bitters, T.A., Falk, T.M. & Kim, S.H. (2016). Social media use and teacher
ethics. Educational Policy, 30(5), 771-795. DOI: 10.1177/0895904814552895
Younger, V. H. (2016). The free speech rights of teachers and social media policies for
school districts. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, 132. https://search.proquest.
com/docview/1937947974?accountid=11664
Appendix A
Guidelines From Field Practitioners on Navigating Social Media Use as an Educator
2
Do:
Utilize privacy settings
Maintain separation between your private and professional accounts
Review old posts on your accounts
Recognize that as an educator, you are put on a moral pedestal
Separate yourself from your position and the division in your post and on your
accounts
Do Not:
Post negative comments about your job
Use your professional accounts for personal reasons
Vent on social media
Post naked photographs
Post about alcohol, drugs, or parties
Connect with students and parents on personal accounts
Interact with students on social media
And when posting:
Consider the purpose of your actions
Assume that everything is public
Assume the superintendent will see all the pictures you post
The William & Mary Educational Review
14
2
Guidelines are from a class. Personal communication, March 6, 2022