The next social media influencers? This Arizona class aims to show students how to make money online

• Mesa Public Schools will pilot a new social media elective course at Mountain View and Red Mountain high schools.
• The course will cover topics such as identifying a niche, social media ethics, revenue generation and digital safety.
• While students may use digital editing tools, actual posting of content will be left to the discretion of students and parents.

Mesa Public Schools will be piloting a social media course at the start of the next school year.

The elective course will launch at Mountain View and Red Mountain high schools.

Jennifer Echols, director of teaching and public learning for the district, said the course would be useful for students who want to become social media influencers and would differ from similar courses such as digital photography and video journalism.

The class will help students understand how to identify their niche if they want to be a social media content creator, Echols said. It will also teach students about the ethics of social media and how to generate revenue.

In addition to learning technical skills, the class will teach students English language arts standards.

At a Governing Board meeting on May 13, board member Lacy Chaffee expressed concern about student safety and the ability of parents to continue monitoring their children’s social media activity.

Students will not be allowed to use their cell phones or go on social media in class, Echols said. They may use digital editing tools for text and visuals, but it would be up to the student and their parents to decide if the content is ever posted online, she said.

Echols said students would be learning about digital safety in the class, and, ultimately, it was up to parents to decide their children’s electives.

“Knowledge is power because, whether we like it or not, at some point our kids are going to access social media,” Echols said. “And I’d rather have my own kids equipped with knowledge and understanding before they do that.”

Echols said social media is an aspect of many jobs in different industries, which will be explored in the class, along with different income streams, she said.

The board unanimously approved the course.

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