Thursday, November 19, 2009
The student rights committee should be applauded for voting against the student housing recommendation for policy code revision. The revisions would have imposed upon students’ privacy right in the residence halls and the student rights committee made the right choice by voting it down.
The code currently does not allow a resident assistant to enter a residence hall room without the expressive consent of the resident. They can write down that there was suspicion of a policy violation in the room and the residents of that room would then have to go to a hearing to defend themselves.
The proposed changes in the code would have allowed authorized housing personnel to “address a suspected policy violation occurring within the room or apartment, in accordance with housing procedures.”
These changes were proposed after the two deaths that occurred on or near campus last year, but the changes were more aimed at stopping policy violation in the resident halls. Neither death, however, occurred in a residence hall. One happened in a fraternity, which is regulated by the Interfraternity Council but not the department of student housing, and the other happened in a scholarship hall. The proposed policy changes would have done nothing to prevent these deaths.
The housing policy now allows “entry without notice in emergencies where imminent danger to life, safety, health, or property is reasonably feared.” This policy is effective and the proposed changes are not only unnecessary but have the potential threat of abuse of power by housing personnel.
While the changes allow students to have the initial right to refuse entry under the policy, the students’ rights still have the risk of being violated by a senior staff member who, under the proposed policy, could enter the room under suspicion of policy violation.
Even some people in support of the new housing policy, such as Diana Robertson, director of student housing, didn’t think the policy would be completely effective at what it was designed to do.
In a letter showing her support of the proposed change Robertson said, “Does this policy eliminate toxic drinking? Probably not. But it does, however, have the potential to change one of the components of a campus culture involved in the misuse of alcohol and drugs.”
It is unacceptable for students’ rights to be put at risk for a policy that has only the potential to change a problem.
In her letter Robertson also said that “many campuses across the country have a policy like the one proposed here. The truth is that they rarely put the policy to use.”
This begs the questions if it doesn’t work at other campuses, why would it work here? And those advocating the proposed policy changes at the meeting, such as the representatives from student housing, did not answer this question effectively.
The alcohol-related deaths on campus last year were a tragedy, and action certainly needs to be taken to keep incidents like them from happening again, but the proposed policy changes were not the answer. The student rights committee made the right decision in voting against the changes and they protected the rights of students. The administration should respect and uphold this decision.
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Comments
Editorial: Student Senate votes to protect student rights
Aren't the Scholarship Halls regulated by the Department of Student Housing? So technically, one of last year's death DID occur under DSH's jurisdiction, right?! Or are you splitting hairs between the policy applying to a residence hall vs. a scholarship hall...newsflash...scholarship halls fall under the same "housing handbook" regulations as regular ol' residence halls. Get your facts straight, Kate!
Editorial: Student Senate votes to protect student rights
"...the other happened in a scholarship hall. The proposed policy changes would have done nothing to prevent these deaths." And a response to the above comment:
Scholarship halls do fall under the Dept of Student Housing, however that death did NOT happen in a Scholarship Hall. He fell off of the roof of one and was found on the ground outside. This student also did not live in a Scholarship Hall; he lived on the 9th floor of Ellsworth.
Editorial: Student Senate votes to protect student rights
Also just a comment about the content -- Diana Robertson saying the policy is rarely put to use at other schools is not the same as the policy being ineffective. It would be effective if put into use, but the emphasis lies on "if."
In fact, the policy would be much MORE effective because it would identify who exactly is in the room and which roommates are participating. Currently, the only information an RA can collect if the door is Not opened is the room number and hence who lives in the room. So all roommates are pulled into a meeting, even if some of them might not have been there.
I say this just for clarity, not because I was in favor of policy. I in fact voted against it.
Further note to students: the Student Rights Committee is open to ALL STUDENTS. You don't have to be an elected Senator to join, so if this interested you, consider joining!
Editorial: Student Senate votes to protect student rights
Thank you jbr00ks9 for correcting the inaccurate information.
Also, Kate, in addition to getting the facts straight, you also need to learn how to edit. The grammar in this is horrendous.
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