This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Tinker v. Des Moines Supreme Court ruling, a landmark case that established the standard for students’ right to free speech in public schools.
In honor of the anniversary, the Central Methodist University Department of Communication and the Ashby-Hodge Gallery of American Art will jointly sponsor a panel discussion at 7 p.m. on Monday, November 4. Students, faculty, staff, and community members will be invited to attend the free event, and refreshments will be served.
The discussion will be broadcast live on the campus radio station and video will be uploaded to YouTube. The event will also include an art display of historical photographs.
Panelists in the discussion will include:
John Tinker, the lead plaintiff in the Tinker v. Des Moines case. Tinker was just 15 years old when he was suspended after he and his siblings chose to wear black armbands to show their opposition to the Vietnam War and their support for the Christmas Truce. A lawsuit was filed after the Iowa Civil Liberties Union approached the Tinker family, and the ACLU agreed to help with the suit. After state courts sided with the school board and supported the suspension, the case was taken to the U.S. Supreme Court. The case was argued before the Court on November 12, 1968, and the original verdict was overturned.
Kelli Hopkins, Associate Executive Director at Missouri School Boards’ Association. She obtained a Bachelor of Science in Education from Missouri Southern State University (1982), Master of Science in Secondary Educational Administration (1994) and a Juris Doctor from the University of Missouri School of Law - Columbia (2001). She speaks regularly at state and national conferences on a variety of education-related legal and policy issues.
Christina (Chris) Wells JD, law professor at the University of Missouri - Columbia since 1993. She received her JD with honors from the University of Chicago Law School in 1988. Her research focuses on issues involving free expression and access to government information. She teaches Freedom of Speech, Gender and the Law, Remedies, and Administrative Law.
Collin Brink JD (moderator), CMU professor since 2007. He received his Master of Arts in Communication from Missouri State University (1997) and his Juris Doctor from the University of Missouri - Columbia (2004). A current member of the Missouri Bar, he teaches a variety of communication courses, including the public relations sequence at CMU.
The event is being organized by students in CT388: Public Relations Campaigns.