Faculty removes embarrassment clause from Code of Conduct
Matthew Brizzi
Issue date: 3/19/04 Section: News
If recently approved changes to the Hendrix Code of Conduct had been in place before last year's Profane was produced, some students who were responsible for the April Fools' Day spoof publication might not have had to appear before Judicial Council.
According to some Hendrix officials, the most significant change to the code, which is printed in the Facefinder, is the removal from its second bullet the concept of embarrassment from the list of types of conduct that the community won't tolerate. The faculty accepted the code revisions at their Feb. 24 meeting, which officially changed the Code. The Code comprises five bullets that convey what the Hendrix community has defined as acceptable behavior.
Dr. Fred Ablondi, chair of the student/faculty Student Life Committee and associate professor of philosophy, wrote in an email that the revised guidelines are an improvement "[b]ecause embarrassment sets too low a bar for improper conduct. If a professor asks a student to stop talking in class, that might embarrass her, but I do not think anyone would want that to be seen as something that violates the College's standards for proper conduct. And I'm sure students embarrass each other, in a spirit of friendship, all the time. Further, as now stated, the particular types of unacceptable behavior are clearly spelled out."
The Student Life Committee is the means through which the faculty address matters relating to students. The faculty do not generally vote on the Committee's proposals unless they have concerns about them. Instead, they express their acceptance of the proposals, which at that point become policy.
The old version of the second bullet stated that "[c]onduct which leads to embarrassment, physical harm, or indignities to other persons will not be tolerated."
The new version is more specific and excludes embarrassment: "Abuse (physical, written, or spoken) or intimidation of others will not be tolerated; nor will conduct which is endangering or which leads to physical harm to other persons."
According to some Hendrix officials, the most significant change to the code, which is printed in the Facefinder, is the removal from its second bullet the concept of embarrassment from the list of types of conduct that the community won't tolerate. The faculty accepted the code revisions at their Feb. 24 meeting, which officially changed the Code. The Code comprises five bullets that convey what the Hendrix community has defined as acceptable behavior.
Dr. Fred Ablondi, chair of the student/faculty Student Life Committee and associate professor of philosophy, wrote in an email that the revised guidelines are an improvement "[b]ecause embarrassment sets too low a bar for improper conduct. If a professor asks a student to stop talking in class, that might embarrass her, but I do not think anyone would want that to be seen as something that violates the College's standards for proper conduct. And I'm sure students embarrass each other, in a spirit of friendship, all the time. Further, as now stated, the particular types of unacceptable behavior are clearly spelled out."
The Student Life Committee is the means through which the faculty address matters relating to students. The faculty do not generally vote on the Committee's proposals unless they have concerns about them. Instead, they express their acceptance of the proposals, which at that point become policy.
The old version of the second bullet stated that "[c]onduct which leads to embarrassment, physical harm, or indignities to other persons will not be tolerated."
The new version is more specific and excludes embarrassment: "Abuse (physical, written, or spoken) or intimidation of others will not be tolerated; nor will conduct which is endangering or which leads to physical harm to other persons."
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seifas
posted 4/07/10 @ 1:15 PM CST
I like articles like this. Great Article! Thanks!
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