Yes, but only under special circumstances. The Fourth Amendment protects us from “unreasonable searches and seizures” of our persons or property.  Because students do not give up all their rights when they set foot on school property, school officials must meet two requirements before searching a student.  First, a school official must have reasonable suspicion, based on facts, that a search will prove that the student has violated the law or a school rule.  Second, the way a school official searches a student must be reasonable and not excessively intrusive based on the student’s gender and age and what they are being searched for.  Both requirements apply to searches of students’ persons (such as pat down of clothing or emptying of pockets) as well as students’ possessions (such as backpacks or purses). [1[

[1] New Jersey v. T.L.O, 469 U.S. 325 (1985) (holding that schoolchildren have a legitimate expectation of privacy in noncontraband items that they carry to school and Fourth Amendment reasonableness standard applies to public school teacher’s search of student purse); Maryland: Md. Code, Education § 7-308 (authorizing searches of students at school or on school-sponsored trips, but only in the presence of third person), COMAR § 13A.08.01.14; District of Columbia: 5 DCMR § 2404.1 (same but also requiring search where possible with privacy protection).