Banter on Twitter? Not in this district

Tweet costs social media chief her job

The downfall of Katie Nash as social media coordinator for Frederick County Public Schools in Maryland was, she said, sealed in a tweet.

On Jan. 5, as a storm approached, a student tweeted a message asking the district to “close school tammarow PLEASE.”

Thinking she would combine pedagogy with a little levity, Nash tweeted from the district’s account, “but then how would you learn how to spell ‘tomorrow’?” and followed it with a smiley-face emoticon.

District officials did not smile back.

They asked her to delete the tweet and subsequent banter with students about possible school closures, and the student in question received an apology from the district’s communications director. On Jan. 13, Nash was fired.

It all set off an uproar on Twitter. Her original tweet had garnered more than 1,100 retweets and 1,400 likes. The spelling-challenged original poster weighed in, tweeting that he did not take it personally.

That did not matter. Nash’s tone and approach to social media were more laid back than her employer liked. The district’s communications director, Michael Doerrer, told the News Post that its Twitter feed is expected to convey “an FCPS voice,” and Superintendent Terry Alban told the paper that Board of Education members had expressed concerns.

Liz Barrett, the board’s vice president, said the tweet “was inappropriate and certainly created a lot of unpleasant responses in terms of other students piling on,” according to the paper.

Doerrer said that although he could not comment on personnel matters, “We do have guidelines related to social media, and our No. 1 goal is to lift up and to encourage students.”

Barrett also said she could not talk about personnel matters. Her offending tweet came as the district aimed to be more relaxed and conversational with students on social media, she told WHAG-TV.

“We had received feedback from some students in a focus group that our tweeting was a bit flat; they were looking for some more engagement,” she said. “I really took that to heart because I know that I am a little bit older and maybe not as hip as some of the students are.”

Nash, 34, has two children who attend school in the district, according to her Twitter account.

Since Jan. 5, the district’s tweets have been far less humorous. “Budget forum tonight - 7pm!” reads one.