The Chronicle Regrets the Error

February 15, 2009 in Administration, Civil Liberties, Gender, Media, Students | by | 2 comments

The Chronicle of Higher Education made  four  three major errors in a single sentence on Friday, mangling issues of technology, due process, and sexual ethics in an online story about a student at Calvin College.

Here’s the original lead to the article, posted on their blog…

A Calvin College student has been suspended for one year over a lewd Facebook message he allegedly sent to an ex-girlfriend.

And here’s what’s wrong with it…

1. The student, Tony Harris, wasn’t suspended, he was expelled. The university called it a suspension, but according to the Grand Rapids Press he will have to re-apply after the year is up. If you’re barred from campus and told you have to apply for re-admission, you haven’t been suspended. You’ve been kicked out.

1. The problem with the Facebook posting wasn’t that it was “lewd,” but that it was found to be harassing. The policy Harris was charged under prohibits “communication that degrades or harasses individuals or groups.” Harris was accused of harassing his ex by posting a derogatory sexual message about her, not of posting something lewd.

2. He wasn’t expelled because of the Facebook incident. He was given probation over it, and told to post an apology on his Facebook page. He was expelled for refusing to apologize, and he says he refused to apologize because he wasn’t the one who put up the post.

3. The post in question was a Facebook status update, not a message to the other student.

Why does any of this matter? Because these aren’t random errors. They’re symptomatic of larger weaknesses in writing about student disciplinary matters, sexual ethics, and new technology, failings that are commonplace not just at the Chronicle, but elsewhere as well.

If you’re going to write a story like this, the details matter. The details are all that matters. 

There’s a huge difference between being suspended for sending someone a smutty email and being expelled for contesting a disciplinary finding that you harassed someone in a semi-public forum. If you neglect those distinctions, you’re not getting the story. The Chronicle didn’t get this story.

Update: As reader JRH notes, Harris’s status amounts to a suspension rather than an expulsion under the terms of the Calvin College student handbook. Studentactivism.net regrets the error.

GA College Blocks Bill Ayers As Speaker

February 15, 2009 in Administration, Civil Liberties, Faculty, History, Politics, Town and Gown | by | Leave a comment

The administration of Georgia Southern University has blocked a student group from inviting sixties radical and education reformer William Ayers to campus.

Ayers, a leader of the Weather Underground, became notorious during last year’s presidential campaign because of his connections to Barack Obama. He was invited to GSU by that campus’s Multicultural Advisory Council, a student group.

Though Ayers had spoken at GSU before without incident, his invitation drew criticism and protest this time, and the university claimed the controversy would raise security costs for the speech to $13,000. They cited these costs in vetoing the event. 

The administration of the University of Nebraska at Lincoln rescinded a speaking invitation to Ayers last fall in the face of criticism by donors and political leaders. Ayers was forced to cancel a speech at the University of Toronto last month when he was denied entry into Canada by border officials.

Students and Faculty March In France

February 14, 2009 in Campus Protests, Faculty, Student Power | by | 1 comment

Tens of thousands of French students and professors took to the streets on Tuesday to protest government plans to reform the nation’s universities. The proposals call for job cuts and new reviews of faculty research by university administrators.

The Guardian on the Gaza Sit-Ins

February 14, 2009 in Campus Protests, Media, Student Power | by | 1 comment

The Guardian, Britain’s most prominent left-leaning daily newspaper, has a substantial article out today on the UK’s recent wave of protests. Here’s how it starts:

A new wave of student activism sparked by events in Gaza has seen dozens of university buildings occupied in Britain, with some of the UK’s top educational establishments agreeing to set up scholarships for Palestinians or disinvest in arms companies linked to Israel.

Though the assault on the territory ended three weeks ago, lingering anger over the attack has prompted students to stage sit-ins at 21 universities, many organised via blogs, Facebook and text messages.

Students at Glasgow and Manchester are refusing to leave the buildings until their demands are met, after similar occupations at other universities provided tangible results in what is being seen as a new era of highly organised student activism.

You can read the whole thing here.

NY Students Protest Diversion of Tuition Funds

February 14, 2009 in Access, Campus Protests, Finances, Politics, Student Government, Student Power, Tuition and Fees | by | Leave a comment

Students at the State University of New York at Potsdam are gearing up a protest over the state government’s decision to divert new tuition revenue away from SUNY.

In the deficit reduction bill passed last week, only 10% of this spring’s $310 tuition increase is slotted to be used to support SUNY, and in Governor Paterson’s proposed budget for next year, only 20% of the $620 tuition hike will stay on campus. 

The Potsdam student government mounted an on-campus rally against the policies this week, and they are organizing a lobby visit to Albany to bring the message directly to state government.

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StudentActivism.net is the work of Angus Johnston, a historian and advocate of American student organizing.

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