Trustees to vote on code changes

While many students will spend this week studying for finals and packing their belongings in preparation for the summer, the Department of Student Rights and IU Student Association President Alex Shortle will be preparing to address the IU board of trustees to propose an amendment to the new Code of Student Rights and Responsibilities. The board will review the code for the first time May 6. \nThe Department of Student Rights, along with Shortle, submitted a letter to IU President Adam Herbert and the board of trustees proposing an amendment to the code's new version.\nThe new code calls for all nine IU campuses to adopt the same rules on student rights, responsibilities and conduct. Shortle and IUSA Director of the Department of Student Rights Chris Maher are sponsoring an amendment to the proposed code that would allow each campus to adopt its own procedures for academic misconduct hearings. \nShortle's letter to Herbert states that discussion of the code was not sufficient, and one universal policy for nine campuses is not appropriate because the campuses are too diverse. \n"I strongly believe that such an amendment is necessary for several reasons," Shortle said in his letter. "First, the proposed language was not given sufficient discussion or student input in committee because of the timetable and the committee's justified feeling that there were many important matters to attend to in the revision. Secondly, the custom and current policy of the Bloomington campus provides for a different role of advisors in disciplinary proceedings, one that is uniquely required for the proper functioning of the Bloomington system."\nCurrently, IU allows for each school to make any necessary procedural guidelines in accordance with academic misconduct hearings. The College of Arts and Sciences procedural guidelines states that an adviser may not speak on the behalf of a student during formal hearings. Recently, the Department of Student Rights criticized COAS for this policy, saying that a student may not be able to state their case to the best of their capabilities and allowing an adviser to speak on their behalf would be advantageous to the student. \nIf the new code is passed by the trustees in June, it would allow all nine IU campuses to have the same guidelines, which concerns some IU students.\nMatt Dattilo, associate director for public relations for the IUSA Department of Student Rights, said the support for students and their rights will continue to be their highest priority.\n"We are asking the trustees to allow for individual campuses to decide on procedures for misconduct that fits the specific needs of each campus ... (IUSA Department of Student Rights) supports the procedures that allow the current definition of the role of the adviser to continue to be in effect," Dattilo said. "IUSA will continue to fight for what it believes is in the students' best interest until there are no options left to pursue."\nJohn Waddell, the clerk of the court and Internal Affairs Committee chairman for the IU Student Body Supreme Court said he personally agrees with Dattilo, Shortle and Maher and will support their proposed amendment. \n"If it is pushed into proceedings, this will ally the fear of the regional campuses," Waddell said. "The point of a formal hearing is to be a conversation, but I realize that sitting on the other side of the table is this student, (and) sometimes they're terrified and they are not going to be able to enunciate or enumerate their points articulately or in a way that is convincing of their genuineness." \nWaddell said he fears that if the amendment is rejected, students will face harsher consequences if the code is not campus specific.\n"If the amendment is not accepted by the board of trustees, or that code is not changed and Bloomington cannot adopt their own procedures, my fear would be that more students would become victims of themselves," Waddell said. "I think that its very possible that more students will be found responsible and have to deal with the consequences of that or, at the very least, have more severe sanctions because they are unable to convince the hearing commission or any formal system of mitigating circumstances that they sought to improve themselves."\nMeghan Dwyer, External Affairs Committee chairwoman for IU Student Body Supreme Court, while not speaking on behalf of the court, said she feels a one-size-fits-all policy would be detrimental.\n"I want to make it clear that streamlining the policy, while it may be appropriate, is not in this instance," Dwyer said. "My personal feeling is it would be great if all campuses could have the same rules, but because all campuses are different -- for instance, Bloomington has many more disciplinary procedures than other campuses -- I do not feel it would benefit those involved. I do agree that the process needs to be individual and we need to choose based on what's most effective."\nDwyer also said from her experience in formal hearings, she feels allowing an adviser to speak on the student's behalf provides no benefit.\n"As a student representative I feel like it's my duty to question all witnesses and I don't think that an outside person is more effective," Dwyer said. "Also, not all students can afford attorneys, so I think it biases the process because it's supposed to be an academic environment, and I'm not sure if it really helps anybody. When I participate in a disciplinary hearing, I want to hear the kids speak; I think it goes against them if someone speaks on their behalf."\nNiko Finnigan, associate justice for IU Student Body Supreme Court, said he disagrees with Waddell and Dwyer and personally supports the current system. He said a uniform code would be a positive thing for IU.\n"Each code needs to be tailored to some degree to the needs of the campus. However, having a basic format, basic duties, rights, responsibilities for everyone at IU would be obviously positive. It creates one kind of universal theme throughout all campuses," Finnigan said. "The way the code is right now seems to be effective."\n-- Contact Senior Writer Lindsay Jancek at lmjancek@indiana.edu.