Mountain View Los Altos High School District is facing another lawsuit, this time from some of its own students and staff.
A co-editor-in-chief, former reporter and former staff adviser of the Oracle, Mountain View High School’s student newspaper, have officially filed a lawsuit against the school and the Mountain View Los Altos High School District, alleging censorship and retaliation against student journalists and the program at large. The suit, which requests a trial by jury, was filed in the Santa Clara County Superior Court Thursday.
Hanna Olson, Hayes Duenow and teacher/adviser Carla Gomez allege that school administrators, namely Principal Kip Glazer, censored an article about the culture of sexual harassment on campus prior to its publication in March and then retaliated against the Oracle by eliminating the Introduction to Journalism class and removing Gomez as adviser.
MVLA superintendent Nellie Meyer denied any wrongdoing in an email to the Town Crier but denied to comment further, citing a district policy to not comment on any ongoing legal matters.
“We look forward to the opportunity to discuss our actions in court and maintain we acted in accordance with not only the best interest of the district’s students, but also all employment rules, as well as state and federal law,” she wrote in an email.
Alleged censorship
In May 2023, the Town Crier reported on the obstacles Oracle journalists faced when writing the story for the publication’s “in-depth” section and the sudden changes to Mountain View High’s journalism program following the article’s publication. At first, Oracle staffers denied that they believed the school had engaged in explicit censorship of the article, but did lament the loss of the Introduction to Journalism class, the loss of their adviser and the erosion of trust between the paper and school administrators following the sexual harassment article.
A few months later, Olson and other students changed their tune. Upon reflection, the co-authors of the article alongside other Oracle students felt they were pressured into making major changes to the article, even if they were not threatened with specific disciplinary action.
“The students, who are more likely than adults to be chilled by the pressure, power and authority of their principal, relented to the pressure Principal Glazer exerted on them and implemented extensive changes to the content and context of the article,” the complaint reads.
The complaint includes the full text of the first draft of the article as it was sent to Glazer for review before publication. This version contains more explicit descriptions of the alleged sexual harassment, including the description of an incident where a student feared that the pseudonymously named Tyler arranged a rendezvous in order to rape her, an incident where a student pseudonymously named Jack sent a misogynistic song he wrote to another student, a detailed instance of nonconsensual sexting, a detailed instance of stalking and other incidents.
One of the largest omissions in the final draft according to the complaint is the fact that Tyler was a member of the school choir and a part of leadership of another club, which they argue was integral to the understanding of the article. Attorneys argued that removing references to the choir program “stripped critical detail and context” that explained one student’s fear of being on trips with him.
Alleged censorship
In May 2023, the Town Crier reported on the obstacles Oracle journalists faced when writing the story for the publication’s “in-depth” section and the sudden changes to Mountain View High’s journalism program following the article’s publication. At first, Oracle staffers denied that they believed the school had engaged in explicit censorship of the article, but did lament the loss of the Introduction to Journalism class, the loss of their adviser and the erosion of trust between the paper and school administrators following the sexual harassment article.
A few months later, Olson and other students changed their tune. Upon reflection, the co-authors of the article alongside other Oracle students felt they were pressured into making major changes to the article, even if they were not threatened with specific disciplinary action.
“The students, who are more likely than adults to be chilled by the pressure, power and authority of their principal, relented to the pressure Principal Glazer exerted on them and implemented extensive changes to the content and context of the article,” the complaint reads.
The complaint includes the full text of the first draft of the article as it was sent to Glazer for review before publication. This version contains more explicit descriptions of the alleged sexual harassment, including the description of an incident where a student feared that the pseudonymously named Tyler arranged a rendezvous in order to rape her, an incident where a student pseudonymously named Jack sent a misogynistic song he wrote to another student, a detailed instance of nonconsensual sexting, a detailed instance of stalking and other incidents.
One of the largest omissions in the final draft according to the complaint is the fact that Tyler was a member of the school choir and a part of leadership of another club, which they argue was integral to the understanding of the article. Attorneys argued that removing references to the choir program “stripped critical detail and context” that explained one student’s fear of being on trips with him.
Alleged retaliation
Shortly after the publication of the article, Glazer visited the Oracle classroom to announce two major changes to the journalism program: that the Introduction to Journalism course would be consolidated with another course and that Gomez would not be returning as the Oracle adviser for the 2023-2024 school year.
Administrators are seeking to convert journalism classes at both Los Altos and Mountain View High Schools into a Career Technical Education pathway, but Michael Moul’s placement as the Los Altos High journalism program adviser this year was not affected by his lack of CTE credential.
Gomez was told she would be replaced with theater teacher Pancho Morris because he held a CTE credential, despite not holding the journalism-specific one. She said she had been in communication with the district about earning the CTE credential for at least a year.
Gomez claims that her removal from the position did not have anything to do with CTE requirements or scheduling constraints, but that it was retaliation for “for acting to protect her journalism students.”
The plaintiffs accuse Mountain View High administrators of violating California’s Student Free Expression Law, legislation dating back to 1977 which protects student journalists from administrative censorship and student journalism advisers against retaliation for protecting a pupil’s right to exercise free speech under the law. It also contends that administrators violated labor code 1102.5, which protects “whistleblowing” employees against retaliation.
The plaintiffs are seeking the reinstatement of the journalism program as it previously existed, an injunction preventing the school from censorship in the future and the reinstatement of Gomez as adviser plus damages and back pay.
Olson and Gomez asked for similar restitution in a Sept. 27, 2023 letter threatening a suit if the demands were not met. The letter included CPRA request for documents related to the journalism program, but a footnote in the complaint called the response to the request “woefully inadequate” and “will, if necessary, be the subject of separate litigation.” Jean-Paul Jassy, the plaintiffs’ legal representation, clarified to the Town Crier that the district turned over “a small number of documents” but believe that there are more that they have not yet received.
The complaint was filed on Student Press Freedom Day, which calls attention to the contributions of student journalists and the challenges they can face from school administrations.
“This case comes at a time when freedom of the press is under great pressure, and it is important that the principles underlying freedom of the press are defended and pursued at all levels, including and especially for high school students,” Jassy told the Town Crier.
The Town Crier will update this story as more information becomes available.
