Mary Merkle, a high school junior, was the captain of the Ames High School softball team. Mary has broken several school records and has pitched three perfect games in her career. She was popular with her teammates and with her coach. At the end of her sophomore year, her coach was replaced and Mary was quite upset about it. The new coach, Tara Tough, was known as a disciplinarian and found fault with Mary's practice habits. Tara benched Mary for two games. Mary, who asked why she was subjected to such a penalty, was angered at the coach's response: "Don't complain, because I run this team and I can decide what I want." Mary took out her anger on her website, where she wrote a critical statement about the coach, calling the coach "stupid" with a "military mind-set." Mary added, "Coach Tough also is one of the stupidest individuals I've ever met." Once that was posted, several students read the comments. One student informed Coach Tough, who informed the principal of the school, which is a public school.

As a group, consider the following issues:

1. Does the Constitution's Bill of Rights apply to this situation? Why or why not?
2. If the Bill of Rights applies to this situation, what portion(s) of the Constitution is or are applicable?
3. Will Mary be able to have her suspension rescinded?