APRIL 2022
Caught In 4K
9
Staff uses social media photos to justify punishments; students, parents react By Djb21642 and Gryphon171
Other students getting punished note that they aren’t ver the last too sad as a couple detenfew weeks, Stetions are worth the internet venson deans have sent fame they’re receiving. Students feaout a wave of passes, punishing students tured on the accounts claim that they’ve for sleeping in class and parking poorly. “gained clout.” In order to support such consequences, The picture used as evidence in Tollthey have been using evidence from stuman’s case was posted on @stevensondent-run Instagram accounts. badparking describing it as a “predicaStevenson-specific student-run acment.” In the picture, Tollman’s car was counts have grown rapidly in recent seemingly horizontally parked between months, amassing hundreds of followadjacent spots. ers and receiving praise from much of In their public statement, Tollman’s the student body. However, the adminisparents declared that they are against tration has recently decided any form of punishment and to use the accounts as proof The post used as appalled that their BMW had for punishment, citing rules evidence in the been pictured without conagainst the behavior disTollman case: sent. The family stressed that played on them. no one has the right to violate In a higher profile case, their privacy. Todd Tollman ’22, who Despite the public backparked poorly near Door 18, lash, the school has stood by had his parking privileges retheir decision to roll out punvoked. After a statement was ishments. Dean Anthony Holl issued from his parents, Stenoted an increase in student venson’s practices have been accountability. met with community backlash. “It’s been really slow “I was in a rush to get to school redown at the station, what cently, which caused me to park poorly,” I like to call the Dean’s ofTollman said. “I usually park fine but it fice,” Holl said. “This influx was just not my day. And now my dean of evidence of wrongdoing is tracking me!” is making it easier for stuThe manner in which deans use social dents to be held accountable. media posts as evidence has sparked deLess violations have occurred bates over the invasion of privacy. Some since.” wonder if deans actually have the right Holl noted that as the school to use Instagram as evidence for punishhas begun to scower social mement.
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dia looking for these violations, faculty have come accross internet trends they do not understand, prompting the administration to create a webinar to help. Another student, Sammy Somnoliento ’24, was sent to the dean after being pictured asleep in the back of class using his backpack as a pillow and a white board as a blanket. His dean had to send multiple passes as he missed the first few calls to the office, assumingly due to sleeping. “I had a very big test the period after so I had to catch some quick ZZZs to get a three,” Somnoliento said. He said that the white board was used because he could not find any other ways to get warm and desperately needed comfort. Along with detentions, students sleeping in class are now encouraged to purchase caffeinated goods from Jazman’s or the newly added energy drinks from the vending machines. For students being punished for poor parking, parking privileges are being downgraded to train station parking. “Before students make the poor decision of sleeping in class or parking badly, they need to think: do I want the internet or deans to see a picture of this?” Holl said. “I don’t think so, buddy. If they make the decision anyway, someone will snap a pic, and the students will be meeting with yours truly.”
