District 51 administration removed Orange and Black (O&B) advisor Steve Fox from his position in late August, 2025, after the paper “expanded beyond typical school coverage and took on more serious topics.” Examples of coverage the D51 administration took exception to included an opinion piece about Gaza and Palestine that generated some backlash, coverage of a lawsuit that “brought attention to legal issues that are not typically covered in school media,” and a cover photo in one issue of the paper that showed a large group of students at a football game in which one student was wearing a shirt that said “I Hate Milfs.” D51 Administration said the photo “didn’t promote the school appropriately.” School officials also took exception to a 2025 Orange & Black article about a discrimination lawsuit brought against District 51 by physical education teacher Sydni Brandon, who was terminated. Brandon’s lawsuit charged the District with discriminating against her because of her race and sexual orientation.
For his part, the former O&B advisor Steve Fox says he is “100 percent convinced” that his reassignment was in retaliation for student content.
In a detailed and thoughtful May 26 editorial, O&B reporter Mason Strippel opposed the administration’s removal of their advisor, saying the move was an attempt to exercise prior restraint and rein in the type of coverage the paper can engage in the future.
Students cited Colorado law, C.R.S. § 22-1-120(6), that protects advisors for retaliation against First Amendment-covered speech:
“A public school employee must not be dismissed, suspended, disciplined, reassigned, transferred, or otherwise retaliated against solely for acting to protect a student engaged in the conduct authorized pursuant to this section or for refusing to infringe upon conduct that is protected by this section or the First Amendment to the United States Constitution (C.R.S. § 22-1-120(6)).”
The situation at GJHS was picked up by Colorado journalist and educator Corey Hutchins, who authors a blog on Substack about Colorado media called “The News Behind the News.” Hutchins says GJHS journalism students are now getting help from a national nonprofit group the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) to reverse the removal of their advisor. FIRE defends free speech and the rights of student journalists on campuses throughout the country. On July 14, FIRE opened an active case on the matter and sent a letter to District 51 Superintendent Brian Hill echoing the students’ concerns and contesting the District’s removal and reassignment of Fox. FIRE asserts the District broke not one, but two Colorado laws: the one cited above and Colorado’s Open Records Act. FIRE submitted requests to the District for public records about Fox’s removal on June 22 and June 30, to investigate the reassignment, but the District failed to respond within the three-working-day window specified in the law. The letter requested “a substantive response to this letter no later than July 28, 2026, confirming the district will adhere to its obligations to uphold student press freedoms and produce the records sought in accordance with Colorado law.”
FIRE has previously sued not just school districts, but government agencies and appointed officials including former Attorney General Pam Bondi, who they sued in February of 2026 and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who they sued in August of 2025.