But several justices said the campus border is not so clear in the age of the internet and the remote learning that has come with the pandemic.
“How does that fit with modern technology?” Chief Justice John Roberts asked.
The school district and the Biden administration both argued that the justices should reject the appellate ruling because it draws an artificial line.
Suspending Levy from cheerleading was a reasonable response because she targeted her coaches and a teammate’s ability to compete, said Lisa Blatt, representing the district.
Levy is “not somebody you’d want at the bottom of the pyramid,” Blatt said, referring to a cheerleading formation.
But if the court didn’t appear ready to embrace Levy’s argument, some justices also were concerned that a ruling for the district could give schools too much power to shut down speech they just don’t like.
“Kids basically talk to their classmates. Most of their conversation is about school. Most of their exchanges have to do with their perceptions of the authoritarian nature of their teachers and others. And why isn’t this any different than just that the coach of this team took personal offense?” Justice Sonia Sotomayor asked, noting that her law clerks told her that among teenagers “how much you curse is a badge of honor.”
Kavanaugh also said the coach maybe went too far by suspending Levy.
“But, as a judge and maybe as a coach and a parent, too, it seems like maybe a bit of overreaction by the coach,” Kavanaugh said.
By the end of the arguments, there was perhaps a sense among the justices that Levy’s case — a teenager venting her unhappiness about an extracurricular program — may not be the best one to use to write a sweeping rule about student speech in the digital age.
A decision is expected by late June.