By Philip Sean Curran, Staff Writer
Teachers in the Princeton school district will have to abide by new regulations governing how they communicate with students through electronic devices, according to a proposed policy the school board is considering.
The district is looking to forbid teachers from giving students their personal email addresses, talking or texting by personal cell phones or communicating by personal social media sites. The policy also spells out “improper electronic communications,” as including anything sexual in nature “or trying to establish a personal relationship with a student beyond the teaching staff member’s professional responsibilities, ” among other things.
“We want to use technology for our advantage,” said Superintendent of Schools Stephen C. Cochrane on Tuesday. “So you want to be able to use those technologies that allow a coach to communicate to a team, or a teacher to communicate to students, but in ways that protects everyone.”
The school board is due to vote on the policy Sept.6 for it to take effect this school year.
The ban on calls and texts has some wiggle room in allowing teachers to contact a student for something “directly related” to teachers’ involvement in a class or co-curricular activity. In both cases, they would have to get permission from the principal or his or her designee before making the call or sending the text.
Joanne Ryan, president of the Princeton Regional Education Association, the teachers union, did not return a phone call seeking comment Wednesday. The district plans get input on the policy from teachers, so there might be changes to the document by the time it gets to the board in three weeks.
The district also will apply the restrictions to its support staff.
