A decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit to extend the 1988 Hazelwood decision to colleges and universities may create limitations for freedom of expression.

Student journalist at Govenor State Univeristy filed suit against Dean Patricia Carter after she told the newspaper’s printer to hold issues until a school administrator gave approval.

Jim Killam, academic advisor for the Northern Star and former president of the Illinois College Press Association has followed the case from the beginning in 2000.

“It’s a pretty clear case of censorship,” Killam said.

The Innovator, GSU’s paper, began publishing stories critical of the administration, according to the Student Press Law Center Web site.

Carter, the Dean of Student Affairs and Services, issued the directive to withold further publication despite the university’s policy stating the student newspaper staff would “determine content and format of their respective publications without censorship or advance approval.”

According to court documents students Margaret Hosty, Jeni Porche and Steven Barba were unwilling to submit to prior review and sued the university, all of its trustees and some administrators.

State Attorney General, Jim Ryan defended the school’s right to censor the paper. Ryan asked the appeal court to extend the 1988 Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier, in which high school newspapers could be subject to censorship.

In the Hazelwood case, the student newspaper was funded by the school. Carter argued that she could censor the paper under the rational used by the Supreme Court in Hazelwood, because The Innovator relies on student activity funds.

On April 10, 2003 the court handed down a decision that supported the plaintiffs and refused to grant Carter with qualified immunity. However on June 20, 2005 the Court of Appeals reversed the decision.

According to Killam it has been ten years since the Northern Star has asked for funding from the university.

“I think what the ruling means, is that papers like the Northern Star are safe, but schools where there is less of a tradition of free student speech it leaves things a little iffy,” Killam said.

The concern with this decision is that school administrators will censor first and ask questions later, Killam said.

Ken Davidson, associate vice president and general counsel, does not think the decision should affect the Northern Star.

“I don’t see it as being a new direction for life here at Northern,” Davidson said.

Brian Thornton, associate professor of communication, thinks the decision takes away from the students learning process.

“It’s pretty sad, students have lost the freedom to learn from their mistakes,” Thornton said.