Policy vs. Practice: The Equal Access Act at Hamilton
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The Equal Access Act has been a popular topic of conversation recently at Hamilton High School. Administrators have leaned heavily on this federal law to allow and defend school clubs. Earlier this year, Mr. Bauer, in an interview with TMJ4, discussed his use of the Equal Access Act in regards to Club America’s formation. He stated in this interview, "...as I dug in more, I came to stumble upon the Equal Access Act of 1984," and later declared, “We were out of compliance with the law.” Mr. Bauer has spoken openly about his use of this law to justify his actions with Club America. However, this law has more facets and layers that seem not to be fully understood. When a school district uses a federal law to defend its actions, it is important to read the fine print.
When applying the Equal Access Act to Hamilton High School, it is crucial to understand the foundations and precedence of the act. The Equal Access Act is a federal law which aids in regulating and supervising extracurriculars within public schools. This act is used to protect student initiated clubs from administrators wrongfully controlling or interfering with these groups. The Equal Access Act has become a topic of conversation not only within the Hamilton School District but in schools across the country as well. This is evident in the recent New York Times article where our school district was mentioned specifically in regards to the district's use of the Equal Access Act and school clubs. Seeing as our district has been under the microscope lately, I have done research into the Equal Access Act and have uncovered areas the Hamilton administration may have overlooked in regards to the act.
In a meeting with Mr. Bauer last November to discuss concerns about club formation following the controversial formation of a Club America chapter at Hamilton High School, Mr. Bauer shared information that I later found concerning in connection to the Equal Access Act. In the Equal Access Act, section §4071. Denial of equal access prohibited (a), public schools can’t infringe on the formation of clubs based on religious, political, or philosophical beliefs within a limited open forum. Part (b) then goes on to explain what “limited open forum” means. In regards to public schools, limited open forum means allowing clubs of different beliefs to meet during non instructional hours. With this interpretation of the law, clubs like Club America, which discuss political ideology, receive no protections to meet during instructional hours, but can meet before school, after school, or during lunch hours. The Hamilton School Board Policy also clearly states, “the district allows non-curriculum related student groups to meet on school premises during non-instructional time…students…shall be permitted to conduct group meetings on high school premises during non-instructional time.” Nowhere within the board policy or Equal Access Act does it state student-led clubs can meet during instructional hours. Both only directly state that clubs can meet during non-instructional time.
However, Club America’s first meeting at Hamilton High School was during instructional hours. Hamilton Board Policy 371.1 states: “The hours designated for non-instructional hours time shall be 6:45 to 7:15 a.m. and 2:45 to 9:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, on days when school is in session.” This meeting, however, took place during advisement, which is in the middle of the day and counts toward instructional minutes. Again, both the board policy and Equal Access Act provide no mention of allowing student-initiated clubs during school hours, nor procedures or protections for such meetings.
Mr. Bauer admitted to knowing prior to the club meeting that Club America planned to meet during school. In an earlier discussion with concerned parents, he affirmed that Club America would not meet during advisement and that that issue had been dealt with. When later asked how the meeting did occur, he responded, saying, “The posters were already printed so they couldn’t undo it.” He then followed up with, “People make mistakes.” This mistake, however, as mentioned above, stretches his interpretation of the Equal Access Act to fit his actions.
Later, in my meeting with Mr. Bauer, it was discussed how student initiated club meetings should be run and by whom. Mr. Bauer proposed, “You can invite me to a meeting and I’ll talk about some of the things that have come up on both sides of the issue [political topics].” §4071. Denial of equal access prohibited (c)(2) declares there can be no sponsorship of a club meeting by faculty members. To understand this further, Section §4072. Definitions (2) defines ‘sponsorship’ as, “...the act of promoting, leading, or participating in a meeting.” Mr. Bauer and any other faculty member are not allowed to participate in a student-led meeting except for custodial purposes. The Hamilton School Board Policy also addresses this concern: “The following standards for all student meetings shall be uniformly required by the principal of all requesting student groups: 3. School employees present at any meetings do so ‘in a non-participatory capacity.’ They may supervise the student meeting but may not direct, conduct, control, or otherwise participate in the student meetings.” His proposal to lead a discussion at a Club America event shows a lack of understanding for the precedence of the law he was basing his reasoning on throughout the meeting along with the policies of Hamilton’s board policy.
As a public school district, it is of utmost importance the district can accurately implement federal and state law. It is also extremely important that members of this district do their research to stay informed on administrators’ decisions in regards to all issues. It is understood that not everyone will see eye-to-eye on issues at Hamilton High School, not just concerning Club America, but in other areas as well. However, I believe all sides can agree that the district should be in full compliance with federal law. Administrators should not only know the overview of acts such as the Equal Access Act, but the subsections and fine print of them as well. In order to create a stronger educational environment, it needs to start with the basics of protecting and ensuring educational law is being complied with fully.
Works Cited
“H.R.5345 - 98th Congress (1983-1984): Equal Access Act | Congress.gov | Library of Congress.” Congress.gov, 4 April 1984, https://www.congress.gov/bill/98th-congress/house-bill/5345. Accessed 15 December 2025.
Salhotra, Pooja. “As Charlie Kirk's Turning Point Pushes Into High Schools, Dissension Follows.” The New York Times, 7 January 2026, https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/07/us/politics/charlie-kirk-turning-point-usa-high-schools.html?searchResultPosition=1. Accessed 15 January 2026.
