Students at two Chicago-area high schools now can be barred from extracurricular activities and athletics if they engage in inappropriate behavior online.
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Community High School District 128, which operates Libertyville and Vernon Hills high schools, adopted a policy Monday night that requires students who want to play football, join the drama club or participate in any other activity to sign an agreement, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. Those who post inappropriate material online or are identifiable on Web sites as engaging in illegal or inappropriate behavior will get the boot.
Only one person objected to the policy.
"As parents we have the obligation to police our children while they are on the Internet," said Mary Gramer, parent of a Libertyville student. "It is not necessary that the school board do this also."
Tom Engstrom, a student representative from Libertyville, supported the policy, suggesting that it would also teach students to be wary of the Internet.
"The Internet is in the public domain and if used improperly can be potentially dangerous to some," he said.