Following homophobic posts on Instagram made by a small group of Oak Park High School freshmen, the OPHS administration sent out a StudentSquare blast addressing the posts. 

Other students with “Oak Park High School” in their profile were both liking and commenting on the inappropriate posts. 

“This behavior is contrary to what it means to be a part of the Oak Park learning community. Our school district educates our students in a Climate of Care. That means that EVERY student is honored, valued, and loved,” Principal Kevin Buchanan, Assistant Principal Jason Meskis and Assistant Principal Natalie Smith wrote in the blast. “The District has taken a proactive stance regarding respecting and honoring students and family members who identify as LGBTQ+.”

The OPHS administrators acted in accordance with the California Education Code when responding to this incident. 

“What educational law says is that school administrations can respond and react to any online activity by students that prohibits a productive learning environment. And so in this situation, we absolutely thought that it did, and addressed the posts,” Smith said. “There aren’t exact guidelines from the state in the follow-up. But we do know that it’s our jurisdiction and that we can take action accordingly.”

Students who see any posts or incidents that they think may be inappropriate can use the anonymous Report-It form on the OPHS website. 

“Students, we ask that you continue to immediately report inappropriate behavior such as those described above,” the post read. “We encourage you to reach out to our Peer Counselors and Safe School Ambassadors, your teachers, and your counselors if you are ever concerned for a friend or classmate.”

According to Smith, students have a responsibility to be kind and caring online. The actions students take online impact the environment in which their peers learn.

“I think the responsibility of students is to treat others like they want themselves to be treated and to treat themselves with respect to not just who they are now, but who they could be in the future,” Smith said. 

Smith emphasized the importance of continuing to learn and grow. 

“On the whole, Oak Park students are incredibly respectful and welcoming of their classmates and peers, and we don’t want that to get lost. But there are always areas that we can improve on and there are always things that we need to do better with,” Smith said.

To learn more about how to recognize cyberbullying click here, and to learn more about digital literacy click here.