Spring Break may be over, but the memories are forever captured in the form of dozens of pictures, some of which include incriminating photos of several Seaholm seniors.
Senior Devon Martin travelled to Mexico for her spring break trip, where the legal drinking age is 18, and the availability of alcohol is high.
Along with packing her flip flops and suntan lotion, Martin brought her camera, in order to capture all the memories.
Soon after returning home, Martin uploaded her photos onto her Facebook page for all to see.
Martin admits that incriminating evidence can be found in her Facebook albums.
“The content [of my pictures] included alcoholic beverages and everything,” Martin said. “But they weren’t really graphic or explicit. They weren’t showing anything that was out of control or crazy.”
Martin said that the pictures were shot in tame locations that her and her friends visited throughout the duration of her trip.
“For the most part it was out to dinner with drinks, or at the club or at the bar, where it was perfectly legal,” Martin said.
When she posted her pictures, she felt little concern over who might have access, or who might be viewing them.
“Even though there’s the risk that employers might see them, or universities, for the most part, they weren’t very explicit,” Martin said. “So I didn’t think it was a big issue.”
Martin defended her actions by saying that she revealed that the pictures were taken on Spring Break in locations where the drinking age was 18.
“Even the title of the album includes the fact that we were in Mexico,” Martin said. “And everyone that was drinking was legal, so I don’t think there will be consequences.”
Fellow senior Gia Scheidt also travelled to Mexico with her friends for spring break, but feels differently than Martin about the issue of posting alcohol-containing photos.
“Obviously I’m against it,” Scheidt said. “All of my friends, we kind of all decided that just right off the bat when we were posing for pictures that there would be nothing bad so that everything could get posted, and if there was, then we just wouldn’t put it up, or we’d crop it, you know, do something like that because we all realize that we have some high stakes and that if something did come of them, with our jobs or sports and school, that obviously it’s just not a risk that you really want to take.”
Scheidt acknowledges that while the drinking age changes upon leaving the country, the standards back at home do not.
“Even if you are 18 there, you’re not 21 here,” Scheidt said. “So the school doesn’t really care, and jobs don’t really care, because just saying, ‘oh I was legal there’ isn’t really an excuse.”
Scheidt’s opinion was matched by Seaholm’s Athletic Director, Aaron Frank, who evaluated the issue from the school and a sports’ perspective.
As far as athletics go, Frank said that an athlete’s contract does not become null and void just because a student visits a country where the drinking age drops to one that makes them legal.
However, Frank does not go out sniffing for evidence.
“I can tell you that I don’t personally look at Facebook at all,” Frank said. “But a lot of people do.”
Frank does catch wind about students engaging in risky activities through other sources.
“Typically, when things are posted on there that are of a dangerous nature let’s say, either a coach will hear about it, or I will hear about it, so then it typically comes to me indirectly,” Frank said. “I can tell you we don’t ignore information that comes to us.”
Frank admits to having taken action when similar issues have come up in previous years.
“It certainly has in the past and there have not been any instances this spring so far,” Frank said. “It certainly has happened in the past so it could happen again, yes.”
Scheidt is not only concerned about the consequences that may follow in regard to school and sports, but also in the workplace.
“All of my friends, we all have jobs,” Scheidt said. “And people are looking after our pages for some reason or another, and, now that those employers are doing it so much, they are actually looking and seeking it out, and really looking for objectionable things.”
Scheidt said that the age gap may cause some misunderstanding about the context in which the photos were taken, that gives reason to avoid the risk.
“Even things that we might think are okay, they don’t understand,” Scheidt said. “They don’t necessarily understand the circumstance or agree with the things we are doing. So between the adults and the family members and the employers, it’s just not smart.”
Waterfront Director and Swim Coach at Orchard Lake Country Club Kevin Fogarty currently employs both current and former Seaholm students, and said that he will take action should a situation arise where an employee had inappropriate pictures on their Facebook page.
“Since lifeguards are role models and since our swimmers might see their Facebook anything that is in the site that is offensive is grounds for dismissal,” Fogarty said.
Similar to Frank’s situation, Fogarty does not personally monitor the pages of his employees. Fogarty knows that any noteworthy information would get back to him indirectly.
“I don't check specifically,” Fogarty said. “I don't need to...I would hear about it from members and then I would have to take action.”
Forgarty sends out an annual email to all new and returning staff members outlining the club policy as well as the standards they are expected to uphold.
In this email, Facebook and MySpace are directly mentioned.
“When you accepted this job you agreed to be a role model for all of the children at OLCC. They admire and respect you and want to be like you,” the email said. “To that end, remember that many of the kids, like you are on line frequently. If you have posted anything on a website like Facebook or MySpace that you wouldn’t want me to see or read, please remove it before the kids see it. Avoid communicating with the member’s children on-line.”
Scheidt works at a summer camp, but her employer, like Fogarty, takes this issue very seriously.
“We actually had a big, kind of heated discussion about this last year,” Scheidt said. “The employer hired a person whose job it is to get on a person’s Facebook without being their friend.”
After doing so, evidence against one employer was uncovered.
“So he actually last year didn’t hire someone back because they had a lot of stuff that he just didn’t like what he saw,” Scheidt said. “He has it in writing, and he tells us, like, that is one of the criteria, that is something that we’re looking at, you should all be prepared for that in the real world, that is something that is going into your whole character profile for the job. So that’s a big part of it.”
Overall, Scheidt said that each student, and each situation is different.
“Obviously, people know what is right for them,” Scheidt said.
