Amelia Marquardt

While some accounts provide helpful information for students, others aim to disrupt the community.

Over the last few years, school-related social media accounts have become common at high schools throughout the country. Some are official accounts created and managed by the school administration, but many are student-run accounts related to student groups, athletics or activities. Liberty is no exception, with approximately 30 different accounts related to Liberty High School on Instagram alone. 

Many of the student-run accounts that aren’t affiliated with the school are informational or entertaining: posting light-hearted memes or spreading information to encourage students to vote, for example. Similarly, accounts that are affiliated with the school typically seek to disseminate information or encourage students to attend school events.

“[Social media is] the only way to go. Now that’s just how we communicate, and we just have to get comfortable with it,” said Tunisia May (she/ her), Liberty Assistant Principal.

On the other hand, there are non-affiliated, anonymous accounts that aim to spread malicious gossip: posting suggestive images of students, making hostile statements about local high schools and putting out other potentially damaging content. 

Occasionally, these accounts have taken their posts too far, leading concerned students or parents to report them to the administration. However, the school is extremely limited in the actions that they can take due to legal censorship regulations.

School faculty generally aren’t able to force removal of posts unless a student is threatening physical harm, blatantly lying about the school or infringing on others’ rights. However, what the school is able to do depends heavily on the specific situation.

“If it’s just some of these weird off-the-wall kind of things, and we all know it’s either satirical or you can’t really take it seriously, you try to look at it with a grain of salt. Like, is it really hurting the school or anybody in the school, or is it just a comment?” stated May. 

Local law enforcement has also gotten involved multiple times in more serious cases. They are able to investigate the accounts further and unveil the identities behind anonymous accounts, along with keeping tabs on those accounts for credible threats. 

By staying involved in social media with active official accounts and by keeping an eye on non-affiliated, student-run accounts, the school can ensure that social media remains a fundamental and integral form of communication and engagement for the school, while also maintaining the well-being and safety of students and staff at Liberty.