After the Honor Committee rejected a proposed constitutional amendment to add informed retraction as an alternative to expulsion, a Committee member is fighting to put the proposal before the student body.
College representative Michelle Jones is circulating a petition that would add the informed retraction amendment to the ballot for the upcoming student elections, to be held Feb. 24-28.
The amendment would give the Committee the power to "suspend students from the University for a period of exactly three full regular session academic semesters and the remainder of a current semester under the provisions of the Informed Retraction."
If the amendment passes, then students confronted with an honor violation could acknowledge their guilt and face the three-semester suspension rather than expulsion.
The proposal, drafted by Architecture representative Brian Winterhalter, received 14 out of 23 votes from the Committee, falling just short of the 16 needed, a two-thirds majority, to move on to the student body for ratification.
"I feel like the students need to have the opportunity to have their voices heard," Jones said.
Jones must gather roughly 1,880 signatures, 10 percent of the student body, to have the proposal added to the ballot. She and 15 other students plan to collect signatures around the University before the Feb. 15 deadline.
Jones said she and other Committee members feel strongly that the honor system and the single sanction need review.
"It's time to give students the opportunity to reaffirm the single sanction or to work toward a new proposal," Jones said. "I see evidence that the student body isn't overwhelmingly in favor of the single sanction."
Other Committee members have stated support for putting this matter before the student body.
"I feel that in order to keep in line with student sentiment the Committee must check from time to time to see what the student body feels," College representative Brian Smith said. "I have heard from faculty and vocal students [who] desire to change the single sanction."
Smith emphasized that the proposal is not a replacement for expulsion, but a supplement.
"I have long been a supporter of the single sanction, but I don't think this negates it," Smith said. "This gives students the opportunity to be honorable."
Though Committee members demonstrated divided opinions on the informed retraction, most support Jones's effort.
"I have no problem with the petition," said Commerce representative Brad Buchanan, who voted against informed retraction. "I'd even sign it if she asked me to."
Buchanan explained that while he supports allowing students to vote on the proposal, he voted against it because he didn't feel informed retraction would work.
"The problems I see are that the faculty is not wholeheartedly supportive of the honor system and student juries are inconsistent," Buchanan said. "I don't necessarily attribute these to the single sanction and I feel eliminating it would cut the legs out from under the honor system."
Other Committee members agreed with Jones and Smith, claiming the single sanction needs re-evaluating.
"I am very disappointed that the amendment wasn't sent before the student body," Engineering representative Petronella Lugemwa said. "There has been a lot of speculation on how students feel but it had been a long time since the single sanction was brought up for review."
Engineering representative Chris Scott agreed with Lugemwa, citing some faculty's negative reservations about the honor system as a reason for such review.
"As it stands, we are alienating many professors who have told the Honor Committee that they don't support the single sanction, which leads to unfair treatment of students," Scott said.
"What is the purpose of the University?" he said. "If it is just to weed out dishonorable students then we are doing it, but if it is to cultivate honorable students then we are not doing it."
Jones said she is confident the petition will gain enough signatures, but some supporters expressed concerns that not enough time remains before the deadline. Only 10 days remain to gain signatures.
"I just want to come away with a policy that we believe in," Jones said. "Regardless of how it comes out"
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