Drunken Pirate Denied Teaching Degree

In what appears to be an egregious miscarriage of justice, a Millersville, PA woman was denied a teaching degree because of a photo on her MySpace page.

Do university officials, employers, and others have a right to use your MySpace, FaceBook, blog, or other online information against you?

I think not.

Stacy Snyder, 27, posted a picture of herself wearing a pirate costume and drinking from a Mr. Goodbar cup at a 2005 Halloween party. The photo was accompanied by the caption “Drunken Pirate.”

Millersville University claims that Snyder was promoting underage drinking. However, at the time Snyder was 25 years old and legally old enough to drink alcohol. There is absolutely no evidence that Snyder did anything illegal.

I believe that the university has overstepped the boundaries and applied their own narrow-minded standards.

Have these officials forgotten what it's like to have fun?

Snyder, a mother of two, should be lauded for obtaining her teaching degree and not condemned for having fun at a party and sharing it with her friends and family.

Employers and university officials have a right to do background checks on their prospective employees or students, but delving into their personal lives to this degree is definitely leading down a slippery slope.

While it is illegal to ask about race on an employment application, it’s no stretch of the imagination to realize that viewing someone’s MySpace page could lead to discrimination of many types.

Background research should be limited to the information that is supplied on the application. If an employer or university official wants to view a MySpace page, then they should ask for the link instead of using Google.

I sure hope that my present or future employer doesn’t find my new band’s Web site and realize that I play drums. They might not like the music we play or want a wannabe rock star on staff.

Heaven forbid that I have a life outside of work.