Admin to execute new student conduct rules; Student leaders decry lack of consultation

Admin to execute new student conduct rules
Student leaders decry lack of consultation
by Richard Jacob Dy
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(This report was published in print in issue 28-29 of the Philippine Collegian on 20 March 2009.)

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The UP Diliman (UPD) administration has proposed rules on student organization admission and intellectual dishonesty amid issues on lack of student participation during its drafting.

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The proposal includes penalties for sexual harassment, intellectual dishonesty, inclusion of freshmen in organizations, and failure to update the roster of members of organizations. A bigger population requirement was also set for an organization to be recognized.

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Likewise, the proposed Code of Student Conduct (CSC) will decentralize the Student Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) into college disciplinary bodies to handle minor and academic-related violations.

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Student Regent Shahana Abdulwahid said sectors in the university were not “actively involved” in the creation of the proposal. Jaqueline Eroles, chair of the students’ rights and welfare committee of the University Student Council (USC), said student governing bodies were not included for participation in drafting the proposal.

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Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Elizabeth Enriquez, who led the CSC review committee with four other faculty members, said the amendments in the existing rules are expected to minimize delays of trials and backlogs of pending cases in the SDT.

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Enriquez said the increasing number of cases being filed cause setbacks in the procedure of the SDT in resolving cases. From 1996 to 2006, an average of 30 cases were filed annually in the SDT, and it took about four to six years before resolutions were made, according to the primer on the proposed rules.

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She said current issues require changes in the existing rules to accommodate more applicable penalties. Additional penalties include fine, disqualification from honors, compensation of damages and withdrawal of IT privileges, according to the CSC primer.

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The Board of Regents, the highest policy-making body of the university, is set to approve the proposal next semester, said Enriquez.

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Lack of consultation

Eroles said the administration rejected their earlier request for student participation in the deliberations of the proposal. But she said they will request the administration to include a student member in the review committee in the final CSC deliberation this summer.

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Enriquez said, “We’re showing [the CSC draft] to the community by uploading it [in the UPD website]. This is the final level of consultation and we uploaded it so that it could be accessible to students, faculty, staff, parents and alumni.”

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After the research through sampling, interviews and discussions conducted by the College of Mass Communication with 150 informants, Enriquez said, only less than 10 student organizations gave their feedback on the proposed CSC.

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Rules on organization

The CSC proposes the inclusion of student organizations to the same rules governing fraternities and sororities which will restrict first year students from joining any student organization.

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Organization officers, on the other hand, could be suspended or expelled if they recruit freshmen students and if they fail to update the roster of their members to the Office of Student Affairs within a week after a new member is recruited.

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While the existing rules require a minimum of only 15 students, the proposed code states that the university will recognize organizations with a membership of at least .5 percent of the total student population minus the freshmen, or about a hundred students based on the computation of the Collegian.

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The ruling also imposes that no more than 49 percent of the members of an organization shall come from a single college.

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USC vice chair Airah Cadiogan said such provisions would compromise the standards and qualifications of special interest, provincial and other organizations just to meet the minimum required population.

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“Fifteen students are enough for you to organize. Isa itong paglabag sa students’ right to organize and to freely associate themelves… Merong mga organization na mapipilitan magpa-recognize sa college kahit university-based [sila dati],” she said.

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Freshmen students, Eroles added, should not be deprived of their right to join academic or non-academic organizations. For organizations that accepts members anytime within a year, she added the rule on updating the list of members would be difficult to sustain.

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Meanwhile, the CSC draft defines intellectual dishonesty as “any fraudulent act performed by a student to achieve academic advantage…,” which includes cheating, distortion of data, plagiarism, submission of same work to two or more courses, and impersonation or providing false information for academic gain.

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Eroles agreed that sanctions on intellectual dishonesty remain unclear due to its lack of definition in the existing rules. But she said certain provisions in the proposed CSC would further limit the students’ rights.

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Change in disciplinary system

The proposed CSC introduces three disciplinary bodies: the Student Disciplinary Council (SDC), College Disciplinary Committee (CDC) and Inter-College Disciplinary Committee (ICDC).

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According to the proposed code, the SDC or the university-level disciplinary council will mainly “hear and resolve cases involving serious misconduct” such as fraud, violence, photographing documents and recruiting freshmen students.

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The CDC will decide on cases of intellectual dishonesty within the college, while the ICDC is set to resolve cases involving more than one college.

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Abdulwahid said the proposed rules should be studied thoroughly and “must undergo several discussions to solicit the views of concerned sectors.”

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The USC held a consultation with student organizations on the proposed CSC at the Vinzons Hall on March 18.#