Student activism: a force to be reckoned with, and an increasing commonality in today’s world. Student activism has made an impact elsewhere in the United States, most notably on college campus protests against the U.S. government’s handling of the Israel-Gaza conflict. But what does student activism look like at Francis Howell? While it may not be as loud and forceful here as it is elsewhere, there’s no doubt that many student activists are operating within the walls of Francis Howell. Separated by issue but united by virtue of cause, many have seen successes in their efforts.
Associate Principal Theresa Maher has been at Francis Howell for many years, and during that time, she has seen and experienced her fair share of student activism. However, she is opposed to overly stringent policies regarding student demonstrations or expression.
“A student’s First Amendment rights do not end when a student comes into the school,” Maher said.
This viewpoint is substantiated by the landmark ruling of Tinker v. Des Moines, which established that students still maintain their Constitutional rights to freedom of speech and expression within a school.
“In that case, students were protesting the Vietnam War, and when they were punished for that, their First Amendment rights were breached. So an administrator or school building as a whole cannot stop a student from expressing their First Amendment rights or free speech,” Maher said.
Francis Howell’s official policy on student demonstrations closely mirrors Maher’s position, as student demonstrations and walkouts are not prohibited, though students are still liable for truancy that may occur as a result.
Joel Machens, a senior, has also seen the results and actions of student activism firsthand. Machens is an activist and fighter for “good government, and making sure that government institutions like the school board are transparent and working in the best interests of all citizens”, and has been strongly involved in the politics of the FHSD school board and other similar institutions.
Student activism has been particularly influential in this regard. For example, a decision to ban Black History and Literature classes by a 5-2 majority of the School Board in January 2024 led to a student walkout and ensuing protest at Francis Howell Central. Students at other Francis Howell schools wore black as a form of silent protest. These protests ended up seeing some success, as the school board members who approved the ban reversed it shortly after it was made. Student protests similar to this one also occurred a couple of years earlier, when the school board voted to rescind an official anti-racism resolution signed in 2020.
“I think that oftentimes our actions are indicators of our beliefs, and when students are reaching out to students who are marginalized, that, to me, is an act of activism,” Maher said.
Machens also holds strong opinions on this issue, as he believes that the protests showed motivation in the face of opposition.
“When people fight for what they believe in, and when you get a lot of people to speak up and say ‘this ain’t right’, we have to do something, people listen and it’s really inspiring,” Machens said
One notable challenge that many student activists face is apathy, something that has been a contributing factor to a decline in student activism in some areas, with Howell being no exception.
“The biggest challenge that every activist faces is apathy. You have to convince people that they need to care about stuff, because a lot of the time, people don’t want to care and they don’t want to have to,” Machens said.
It currently isn’t clear where student activism is heading at Howell. With an increasing amount of frustration with school board policy and the goings on in state and national governments, activism has the potential for growth. “Student activism is often contingent upon the things that are happening outside of our school walls,” Maher said “So I think as we continue to see challenges in different areas of concern, such as climate change, we see policies [for those concerns]. I think [Howell] will always expect some level of student activism in the future.”
While the future may be uncertain, student activism and student protest are two things that are becoming an undeniable reality that many schools/educational institutions have to confront and deal with as student movements gain momentum. What this spells for the student activists of Howell isn’t clear, but if this rise continues, then Howell may witness the first wave of real student activism in its history.
