Riverhead school district joins federal class action lawsuit against social media companies: Dec. 12 school board wrap-up

The Riverhead Central School District is joining a federal class action lawsuit against technology companies to pursue damages for the harm social media platforms have on adolescent mental health.

The Riverhead Board of Education Tuesday night authorized “social media” litigation against confidential parties and approved a contract with Frantz Law Group, a California-based personal injury law firm to represent the district, and the district’s counsel, Guercio & Guercio LLP. 

School board president Colin Palmer confirmed the district was joining the class action against major social media companies such as Facebook, Google, TikTok, Instagram, Roblox, Snapchat and other affiliated people and companies. The lawsuit alleges the platforms are designed to addict children and teens, lack meaningful parental controls and other safeguards, and knowingly harm kids. 

Frantz Law Group joined the litigation on behalf of other school districts earlier this year. Other school districts and more than half the states in the country have joined the lawsuit, including New York State.

Under the agreement with the district, Frantz Law Group will receive 25% of any settlement or recovery obtained in the lawsuit and Guercio & Guercio will receive 25% of net attorney fees for acting as co-counsel. The district is not responsible for paying any money to Frantz Law Group other than what is recovered in a settlement.

“So if it doesn’t go anywhere, it’s no skin off the district’s back. We’re not liable for anything financially,” Palmer said.

“No one wants to lose out on money to benefit the taxpayers, and the district’s interested,” Eric Levine of Guercio & Guercio said.

The lawsuit comes as the concern about the impacts of social media, especially on younger adults, reaches a tipping point. U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy issued an advisory on the risk social media can have on youth mental health in May and called for action to better understand the full impact of social media’s use on mental health.

“The most common question parents ask me is, ‘is social media safe for my kids’. The answer is that we don’t have enough evidence to say it’s safe, and in fact, there is growing evidence that social media use is associated with harm to young people’s mental health,” Murthy said in a press release announcing the advisory. “Children are exposed to harmful content on social media, ranging from violent and sexual content, to bullying and harassment. And for too many children, social media use is compromising their sleep and valuable in-person time with family and friends. We are in the middle of a national youth mental health crisis, and I am concerned that social media is an important driver of that crisis – one that we must urgently address.”

In other action at its Dec. 12 meeting, the school board:

• Approved a contract with Transfinder for software, training, professional services and hosting services for the district’s transportation department. The contract costs a total of $263,808 and lasts three years.
• Approved a separation agreement between the district and Assistant Superintendent for Business Rodney Asse. Asse has been reassigned to home since Oct. 24, according to school board president Colin Palmer, and will continue to be reassigned and paid full salary and benefits until he resigns on Dec. 25, per the terms of the agreement. Read more here.
• Approved tenure appointments for three employees: Phillips Avenue Elementary School principal Stephen Hudson, high school music teacher Joseph Randazzo and high school science teacher Deborah Suprina.
• Heard proposals from high school faculty and administration for new and modified courses for the upcoming school year. Classes being considered include AP Environmental Science; Historical Fiction; Poetry and Life; Advanced Creative Crafts: Open Studio; Digital Film II/III; and ACE Introduction to Film: Supernatural and Science Fiction.
• Received a report from Interim Superintendent Cheryl Pedisich regarding the first meeting of the school district’s new Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. The committee is made up of 65 individuals. The committee will be split into five sub committees for: curriculum and instructional professional development; student engagement and support; community outreach and district-wide events; and policy and advocacy. Pedisich said the school district will be sending out community surveys at the beginning of next year to provide input on the district’s DEI efforts.