The faculty of UCSC is up in arms about the administration’s decision to fine six students $944 eac.htmlh for the role they played in the occupation of Kerr Hall last November during the student strike on campus.html. They claim that the “voluntary resolution agreements” find each of the students equally guilty for the $34,000 in damages supposedly caused to Kerr Hall, without providing any evidence that the students were equally responsible for the damage. They are also angry that students were denied formal hearings despite their requests, since they were not threatened with suspension or expulsion.
Some 100 faculty members have signed an official letter to the administration claiming that “the resolution does not separate accusations of criminal behavior from protected speech acts; it implies that any form of participation in these actions is tantamount to vandalism.” In her response to the faculty letter, Vice Chancellor Felicia McGinty described the judicial process, but failed to address the specifics of the case in question.
UCSC faculty are also annoyed at the steps campus police are taking to monitor dissent on campus. Many have complained that police used surveillance cameras to monitor participants in a demonstration by foreign language students in February against proposed cuts to the school’s language programs. A 2004 faculty senate PATRIOT ACT resolution charged the administration with ordering the police to avoid any surveillance activities without a court order. In that instance, the administration responded with a missive beginning with, “During these difficult times …” ‘Nuff said. Read more at Fox 35.
