THE JOURNAL & TOPICS NEWSPAPERS | WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2008

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MySpace Abusers Beware: School Officials Keeping Closer Eye On Web

By TOM ROBB

Journal Reporter

More and more high school students conduct their social interaction using web networking sites, blogs and text messages.

School bullies also now use this new technology to harass and intimidate fellow students.

To keep up, the Leyden High School Dist. 212 board approved new rules expanding the code of conduct to cover bullying in cyberspace and with high tech devices.

"What happens on the internet can wash back to school," said East Leyden High School Dean Mike Grosch. "Parents need to be aware of it."

Grosch acknowledged that parents might have a harder time monitoring their children's Internet activity as social networking websites like Facebook are now available on cell phones and other devices.

Grosch said the new language in the code of conduct is codifying what deans at Leyden high schools have already been practicing.

The new rules say that if there is a reasonable connection to the school or a reasonable expectation of disruption through harassing or threatening action on the Internet, through text messaging or in internet blogs the school may take action against the student for a violation of the code of conduct.

The two most popular networking websites, MySpace and Facebook, have privacy software to limit access to those the user does not want viewing their pages.

Grosch would not give details on how the school is able to know what is going on, on those sites.

"We don't cruise MySpace," said Grosch. "But we're aware of social networking sites."

Grosch said students get, "angry fingers" becoming much more vicious in their verbal attacks when online versus their face-to-face interaction.