HIBBING PUBLIC SCHOOLS
INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT 701


BOARD POLICY 903
SERIES: 900 Community Relations
SUBJECT: 903 Distribution of Materials on School District Property by Nonschool Persons
ADOPTED:  
REVISED:  



The following definitions shall be used to clarify this policy:


1. “Distribution” means circulation or dissemination of material by means of handing out free copies, selling, or offering copies for sale, accepting donations for copies, posting or displaying materials, or placing materials in internal staff or student mailboxes.
2. “Materials” includes all materials and objects intended by nonschool persons or nonschool organizations for distribution.   Examples of nonschool-sponsored materials include but are not limited to leaflets, brochures, buttons, badges, flyers, petitions, posters, underground newspapers whether written by students, employees, or others, and tangible objects.
3. “Nonschool person” means any person who is not currently enrolled as a student in or employed by the school district.
4. “Obscene to minors” means
   a. the average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find that the material, taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest of minors of the age to whom distribution is requested;
   b. the material depicts or describes, in a manner that is patently offensive to prevailing standards in the adult community concerning how such conduct should be presented to minors of the age to whom distribution is requested, sexual conduct such as intimate sexual acts (normal or perverted), masturbation, excretory functions, and lewd exhibition of the genitals; and
   c. material, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors.
5. “Minor” means any person under the age of eighteen (18).
6. “Material and substantial disruption” of a normal school activity means
   a. any disruption which interferes with or impedes the implementation of a educational program of the district for which student attendance is compulsory, and
   b. actions during a voluntary school activity such as student rioting, unlawful seizures of property, conduct inappropriate to the event, participation in a school boycott, demonstration, sit-in, walk-out, or other related forms of activity.
7. “School activities” means any activity sponsored by the school including, but not limited to, classroom work, library activities, physical education classes, official assemblies and other similar gatherings, school athletic contests, music concerts, school play, other theatrical productions, and in-school lunch periods.
8. “Libelous” is a false and unprivileged statement about a specific individual that tends to harm the individual’s reputation or to lower that individual in the esteem of the community.

The school district shall provide a method through administrative procedures for non-school person and organizations to distribute materials appropriate to the school setting, within the limitations of this policy.  The administration shall review requests and render permission or denial of permission for distribution.

The administration shall always prohibit distribution of material that:
1. Is obscene to minors;
2. Is libelous;
3. Is pervasively indecent or vulgar or contains any indecent or vulgar language or representations, with a determination made as to the appropriateness of the material for the age level of students to which it is intended;
4. Advertises or promotes any product or service not permitted to minors by law;
5. Advocates violence or other illegal conduct;
6. Constitutes insulting or fighting words, the very expression of which injures or harasses other people (e.g., threats of violence, defamation of character or of a person’s race, religious or ethnic origin); or
7. Presents a clear and present likelihood that, either because of its content or the manner of distribution, it will cause a material and substantial disruption of the proper and orderly operation and discipline of the school or school activities, will cause the commission of unlawful acts or the violation of lawful school regulations.

Any person violating this policy or distributing materials without permission will be directed to leave the school property immediately and, if necessary, the police will be called.




Legal References:
U.S. Constitution, First Amendment
Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier, 484 U.S. 260, 108 S. Ct. 562, 98 L.Ed.2d 592 (1988)
Cornelius v. NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, Inc., 473 U.S. 788, 105 S. Ct. 3439, 87 L.Ed.2d 567 (1985)
Perry Education Ass’n v. Perry Local Educators’ Ass’n, 460 U.S. 37, 103 S.Ct. 948, 74 L.Ed.2d 794 (1983)