Delta Paw Print

The Student News Site of Delta High School

Delta Paw Print

Delta Paw Print

About

Delta Paw Print: Open forum for student expression

Student Media Policy (Adopted from and based on the SPLC model editorial policy)

 Policy 2025-2026

 

Mission: Delta Paw Print is the official student press and social media outlet for Delta High School and is produced by the Delta High School student media staff. Delta Paw Print has been established as a designated public forum for students and the public. All forms of media produced by the Paw Print staff are not reviewed or restrained by school officials prior to publication or distribution. Advisers may and should coach and discuss content during the writing process. 


In accordance with C.R.S.A. 22-1-120: No expression made by students in the exercise of freedom of speech or freedom of the press shall be deemed to be an expression of school policy, and no school district or employee, or parent, or legal guardian, or official of such school district shall be held liable in any civil or criminal action for any expression made or published by students.

 

All forms of media produced by the Paw Print shall comply with District Policies JICEA and JICEA-R and with Colorado state law.

Publication/ Distribution: The Delta Paw Print will maintain a news website that will be updated a minimum of once a month by the student staff. The Delta Paw Print may use social media and morning announcements to highlight feature stories. In addition to maintaining the website, student reporters will produce a monthly edition of The Delta Paw Print in newspaper or magazine format for the Delta County Independent or a podcast on KVNF community radio.

The website, social media, and videos or podcasts are entitled to the same protections- and subjected to the same freedoms and responsibilities- as media produced for the publication.  As such, it will not be subjected to prior review or restraint.  

 

The principal will coordinate with the publications adviser on the time, place and manner of distributing school-sponsored publications to reduce any conflict with school instructional time and/or reduce any disruption of the orderly operation of the school, which might be caused by the distribution of school-sponsored publications.

 

Calendar and announcements: The Delta Paw Print staff will use social media as a platform for announcements.

 

Research:  Student journalists may use print and electronic media, including social media, to report news and information, to communicate with other students and individuals, to ask questions of and consult with experts, and gather material to meet their news gathering and research needs.  Any images or data taken from the internet will only be used with permission. Any images generated by AI will be labeled as such. The Delta Paw Print will NOT use AI to generate any part of a story. All information that did not primarily come from the Paw Print staff will be credited in the article.

Law: Delta Paw Print and its staff are protected by and bound to the principles of the First Amendment and other protections and limitations afforded by the Constitution and the various Colorado laws and court decisions implementing those principles. Delta Paw Print will follow all censorship laws under the Tinker standard in accordance with the Colorado Student Free Press Law. Delta Paw Print will also honor copyright law and understand that any work of authorship that is put in tangible form is protected by the creator and that one must have written consent to use it.  If a copyright owner is being reviewed or critiqued, using a picture is considered fair use (an album cover, for example). All articles and videos produced by the Paw Print staff is copyrighted to the article authors/video producers of Delta Paw Print.

 

Editorial Decisions: Paw Print will not publish any material determined by student editors or the student editorial board to be unprotected.

 

Unprotected material includes the following:

 

  • Expression which is obscene
  • Expression that is libelous, slanderous, or defamatory under state law
  • Expression that is false as to any person who is not a public figure or involved in a matter of public concern
  • Expression which creates a clear and present danger of the commission of unlawful acts, the violation of lawful school regulations, or the material and substantial disruption of the orderly operation of the school, or which violates the rights of others to privacy, or that threatens violence to property or persons.

 

Procedure for solving disputes:

 

If, in the opinion of a student editor, student editorial staff, or faculty adviser, material proposed for a publication may fall within the list of exceptions above, the legal opinion of a practicing attorney should be sought. The free services of the Student Press Law Center (splc.org) are recommended. The final decision of whether the material is to be published or distributed will be left to the student editor or the student editorial staff.

School or district officials must base a forecast of material and substantial disruption on specific facts, including past experience in the school and current events influencing student behavior, and not on undifferentiated fear or apprehension. In determining whether student media is disruptive, consideration must be given to the context of the distribution as well as the content of the material. Consideration should be given to past experience in the school with similar material, past experience in the school in dealing with and supervising the students in the school, current events influencing student attitudes and behavior, and whether there have been any instances of actual or threatened disruption prior to or contemporaneously with the dissemination of the student publication in question. Actual or potential heated discussion or debate alone is not sufficient evidence of a material and substantial disruption.

School officials shall have the burden of providing to the student journalist prior written justification for their limitation of school-sponsored media.

Appeals

The student journalist shall have the right, within three business days of receiving the written reason for the limitation of school-sponsored student media, to appeal the decision to the school administration. Appeals must be filed in writing. The school administration shall convene a hearing within five business days. The student journalist shall have the right to have the student’s parent or legal guardian and the student media adviser present. The burden of proof shall be on the adviser or his or her student editor to demonstrate that the media in question has met the criteria for exclusion. The principal shall render a written decision within 48 hours of the hearing.

The student journalist shall have the right, within five business days of receiving the written reason for the limitation of school-sponsored student media, to appeal the decision to the Superintendent. Appeals must be filed in writing. The Superintendent shall convene a hearing within five business days. The student journalist shall have the right to have the student’s parent or legal guardian and the student media adviser present. The burden of proof shall be on the principal or his or her appointed representative to demonstrate that the media in question has met the criteria for exclusion. The Superintendent shall render a written decision within 48 hours of the hearing.

The student journalist shall have the right, within five business days of receiving the Superintendent’s written decision, to appeal to the school board. The school board shall hear the appeal at the next regularly scheduled board meeting, or within 10 business days, whichever comes first.  The school board shall render a written decision within 48 hours of the hearing. 

The decision of the school board shall be considered the final determination by the District deemed ripe for judicial review if the student journalist chooses to do so. 

Editorial Staff:  The editorial board, which consists of the staff’s student editors, will determine the content, including all unsigned editorials.  The views stated in editorials represent those of the entire editorial board. Columns or reviews with bylines by one author represent the opinion of the author and the author only.

Editors/ Job Descriptions: All staff are expected to have employability skills such as problem-solving, maturity, relations with other people, communication skills, task-related skills, personal values, health and safety habits, and commitment to the job at hand.

Editor-in-chief: This person(s) oversees the entire staff and assigns stories. The EIC makes sure things are managed properly.  The EIC may also be responsible for delegating grades to members of staff.

 

Web Editor/s: The web editor is responsible for helping set and manage deadlines, and ensuring that professional-quality stories are posted on the web.  This editor will work closely with the Editor in Chief and will reserve the right to actively grade student work.

 

Sport Editor: This editor will regularly keep track of the high school sports schedules and story ideas.  The editor can assign as well as write and oversee all sports coverage.

 

Social Media Editor:  This editor is in charge of all social media related to the Delta Paw Print.  This includes ethically covering breaking news.

 

Copy Editor: This editor is responsible for proofreading all stories and suggesting revisions following AP style.

 

Design Editor: This editor is in charge of the overall design and layout of the monthly edition of the Delta Paw Print in the Delta County Independent.

 

Audio/ Video Editor:  The editor helps review and edit scripts and audio from podcasts or videos.  This editor also helps with publication and managing files.


Letters to the Editor: Delta Paw Print may accept letters to the editor, guest columns, and news releases from students, faculty, administrators, community residents, and the general public. All submissions will be verified. The editorial board reserves the right to withhold a letter or column, or other submission and/or return it for revision if it contains unprotected speech or grammatical errors that could hamper its meaning.  Submissions should be typed.  The issue’s editorial staff will determine deadlines for letters or columns.

Creative writing submissions will be accepted. The staff reserves the right to choose which submissions will be published online and how many will be published per week.

The staff will accept art submissions and publish the ones approved by the Delta Paw Print staff.

Corrections:  The web editor and EIC will work together to make corrections to any web stories that would need them promptly.

Fairness: Delta Paw Print will strive to report all issues in a legal, objective, accurate, and ethical manner in accordance with the SPLC and Society for Professional Journalists.  The Canons of professional journalism include a code of ethics. Delta Paw Print is tested on its code of ethics and is expected to adhere to the student-made code.
Delta Paw Print will not avoid publishing a story solely based on possible dissent or controversy.

Role of Adviser: 

Student media advisers are responsible for working with and providing guidance to student journalists. Student media advisers provide training in journalistic principles and access to necessary resources, including but not limited to training in journalistic ethics and media law. Student media advisers may provide feedback to students, including teaching professional standards of English and journalism. Student media advisers do not determine, assign, or approve the content of student media, except if the adviser believes the student media has met the criteria for exclusion listed in “Exceptions” below. Such decisions are subject to the appeal process, outlined below.

In the event a student media adviser is not previously trained in journalism, appropriate professional development will be made available by the school district, preferably through the state’s journalism education association, the National Journalism Education Association, or other recognized entity aimed at supporting media advisers.

A student media adviser may not be dismissed, suspended, disciplined, reassigned, transferred, or otherwise retaliated against for acting to protect a student journalist engaged in permissible conduct or refusing to infringe on conduct that is protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, C.R.S. 22-1-20, or this policy. No financial decisions relating to the student media program may be based, in whole or in part, on the past, present, or potential content of school-sponsored student media.

Quotations: Paw Print will quote individuals interviewed fairly and accurately.  Any inflammatory quotes will be either witnessed by two reporters, signed off on, or tape-recorded for accuracy.  Any inaccurate quotations will be corrected in the following issue or posted on the web. The same applies to online content; individuals will sign off on all video interviews.

Electronic Photo Manipulation:  Electronic manipulations of photos or illustrations will be labeled if used.

Trivia: Delta Paw Print takes pride in reporting real news that directly affects the magazine readers/online audience. Trivial stories that promote popularity contests or have little direct relevance to the reading/viewing audience will be avoided unless there is a redeeming news quality included in some way. Special theme editions must have redeeming news quality and may be periodically published throughout the year.  The Paw Print Staff will do occasional viewer polls in order to effectively determine interest in stories of a trivial nature.

Bylines/ Credits: Delta Paw Print gives credit to all staff members and their respective roles in the publication. For the publication, author bylines will appear at the top of each article.  Photography credit will be given beneath each photo. The illustrators will sign their illustrations. Any submissions to the DCI are the property of the original authors, and credit must be given to the original authors or owners of the work. All videos produced will have lower thirds dedicated to presenting the host’s name and title, as well as the photographer’s name under photos. All production credits will be either at the end of a video or in the description box. Podcasters will be introduced in the podcast, and production credits are given at the end.

Illustrations:  Photographs and artwork will be used either to accompany a story or stand alone to tell a story.  Illustrations and photos will follow the libel and copyright laws. Student editors will determine the size and placement of drawings, photos, or student artwork.


Obituaries: If a student, faculty, or staff member dies, Delta Paw Print will include an obituary and print the person’s name, school activities, date of birth and death, and any other significant information. The staff will only publish an obituary with family permission. Cause of death will be published only if the surviving family gives consent.