The Student Press Law Center found that school districts in Iowa and West Virginia are not fully complying with state laws designed to protect student journalists, leaving some students vulnerable to illegal censorship despite existing legal safeguards.
The findings come from a review conducted this fall as part of the New Voices movement, a nonpartisan, student-powered initiative that advocates for state laws protecting student press freedom. The SPLC examined district-level policies in both states to determine whether schools had properly implemented their New Voices laws.
“Passing a New Voices law is just the first step to protect student press freedom in each state,” said Grayson Marlow, an advocacy associate with the SPLC. “The real test is whether districts follow through.”
Iowa, which passed its New Voices law in 1989, has one of the oldest student press protections in the country. However, the SPLC found that many school districts in the state lack policies that fully meet the law’s requirements. In West Virginia, where a New Voices law was enacted two years ago, only 44% of the state’s 55 school districts were found to be in full compliance.
Over the past decade, 11 states have adopted New Voices laws, extending legal protections to millions of student journalists nationwide. The SPLC continues to monitor compliance and support students through legal assistance, education and advocacy efforts aimed at ensuring schools uphold press freedom protections guaranteed by law.
