"We don't have privacy, and school policies have to catch up with that. I don't know how."

That's Bernice Garcia-Baca, NEA president in Santa Fe, speaking about teachers and their use of social media at the district's Educational Services Center last Tuesday night. That evening, board Vice President Glenn Wikle attempted to get a resolution passed that grants Santa Fe Public Schools employees free speech, specifically on the Internet, without fear of retaliation.

Wikle's point is that district personnel, including teachers, should have the right to say what they want on the Internet via their personal computers, be it Facebook or Twitter or an education blog. Wikle acknowledged later in the evening that he did not realize the current Internet users policy limitations only apply to how SFPS personnel use district equipment, and not personal computers at home.

District Superintendent Bobbie Gutierrez said SFPS staffers should be able to speak their mind online. "If it's your own equipment, on your own blog, on your own Internet service, you should be able to say what you want to say and not fear retaliation," she said Wednesday morning. But, she added, educators complaining online about principals, teachers, peers and students still need to be cautious.

"Can I say [online] that the school board drove me crazy today and not expect to have retaliation?" she said.

Garcia-Baca agrees: "There is freedom of speech, and also consequences for freedom of speech. It's your free speech and your free time — but parents may complain."

And parents have complained, not just regarding what is being said, but what is being shown online.

Teacher Ashley Payne of Atlanta got the ax after a parent (or perhaps a co-worker) sent her school district an image of Payne enjoying an alcoholic beverage while Payne was on vacation. A Colorado English teacher took heat after she posted erotic poetry on her site. The Internet is still abuzz with comments regarding a Brooklyn teacher who made a tasteless joke about her students on her Facebook page.

Gonzales Community School parent Lina Germann, who found a blog from a Santa Fe teacher complaining about "baby-sitting" kids at her school, wonders how far free speech should go in this case. She spoke about this issue at Tuesday's board meeting and, in a follow-up email, wrote, "According to the board tonight, teachers have First-Amendment rights to say whatever they want online without repercussions as long as they are doing it on their own time and with their own computer. I agree, even though I think teachers should be careful what they say online about their jobs so they don't lose the respect of their peers, supervisors, and customers. When anyone blogs online, badmouthing someone, that becomes cyberbullying, and it [policy] should apply to adults as much as it should apply to kids."

On Tuesday, board member Steven Carrillo said, "Everyone likes to say, 'I support free speech, but ...' and that 'but' means 'I don't support free speech.' "

Board Secretary Linda Trujillo pointed out that the First Amendment guarantees free speech for all.

Board President Barbara Gudwin rightly noted that it remains a complex issue, and she suggested the board's legal counsel review Wikle's policy draft on the issue before a vote is taken.

The question may be this: Should educators be held to a higher moral standard online than other people because their work is so closely tied to the welfare of children? If you have a thought on the matter, feel free to email me or write a letter to the editor of The Santa Fe New Mexican.

Contact Robert Nott at 986-3021 or rnott@sfnewmexican.com.