This Week in FIRE News: Victory for Student Banned from Campus for Facebook Post

It's been a whirlwind week for Catawba Valley Community College student Marc Bechtol. On Wednesday, we reported in a national press release that he had been pulled out of his classroom and banned from campus after he complained on Facebook about his school's aggressive marketing of a debit card company to its students. Thanks in large part to pressure from FIRE and the media outlets that reported on his case, Bechtol learned this morning that all charges against him have been dropped and he is free to step foot on campus. However, FIRE will still be watching the college closely, given the fact that the policy used to punish Bechtol's protected speech remains on the books.

FIRE thanks those who took action or publicized this outrageous punishment of free speech. Below is a recap of the case's headlines:

• Gawker: College Bans Student for Complaining About Branded Debit Cards
• USA TODAY College: FIRE: Student banned from campus after Facebook post protests college's deal with debit card company
• The Huffington Post: College Bans Student for Complaining About Branded Debit Cards
• WCNC.com: School bans student from campus after Facebook post
• Front Page Mag: Free Speech Victory at UC Santa Barbara
• Inside Higher Ed: After Insulting College's Ties to Debit Cards, Student Kicked Out
• Charlotte Observer: Facebook post gets college student banned from N.C. campus 
• Popehat: Remember Our School's Motto: "And Now, A Word From Our Sponsors"
• Hot Goss: School bans student from campus after facebook post
• Gaston Gazette: Students Facebook post could get him kicked out of college
• iStockAnalyst: Watercooler Stories
• iStockAnalyst: Student suspended over Facebook post
• ShortNews.com: College Bans Student for Facebook Post
• Dalje.com: Student suspended over Facebook Post
• UPI.com: Student suspended over Facebook post
• FOX Charlotte: CVCC Student Banned from Campus After Facebook Post
• WISTV: Facebook posting gets college student in trouble
• FOX 8: NC College Bans Student for Facebook Comment
• WSOC Charlotte: Student's Facebook post could get him kicked out of school
• WBTV: Facebook posting gets college student in troubl
• The Moral Liberal: Video of Student Banned from Campus for Facebook Post on WCNC, Charlotte
• News & Observer: Facebook post gets college student banned from N.C. campus