GT Listens clarifies policy changes

Students will be able to learn about the new housing policy during a free speech forum called GT Listens. The event will be taking place next week to inform students of the changes to the housing policy.

"There is only a subset of students who know about the changes. We want to create an understanding about the changes and what is expected from the students," said Bobby Beaulieu, undergraduate vice president of campus affairs.

The forum will take place Tuesday Oct. 10., from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. The forum will last for forty minutes. The first twenty minutes will be a discussion of the changes and the second twenty minutes will be a question and answer session where the students can ask for clarification.

"The forum will be looking at both policies and discussing the differences between them. The changes will be printed out on paper and passed out to the students attending the forum," Beaulieu said.

According to Beaulieu, the changes to the housing policy are limited in scope.

"The changes are much more narrow than what students think they are, and that creates the misconception about the policy," Beaulieu said.

The fact that students have a misconception is the reason the forum was created.

"The idea is that there is a common misconception about what the housing policy is, and we want to make sure everyone is on the same page as to what the changes are so we can move forward in conquering the misconception," Beaulieu said.

After the forum, the job of informing the students about the policy will change venues.

"The main task of educating people on the changes will be done by a panel of administrators. We want to make sure students have the most comprehensive scope about what is going on," Beaulieu said.

While the administrators are the ones in charge of educating the students, it was not the administrators who called for the forum.

"This forum came about from interest on the student side," Beaulieu said.

The forum will not be an isolated event.

"The forum will be a part of a whole series of events such as Finding Common Ground and the Civility Audio Conference," Beaulieu said.

The changes being made to the policy are limited to the section entitled Commitment to Diversity. The changes were made to the list of acts of intolerance that are unacceptable. The first point was shortened to read "Any attempt to harass or to physically injure or harm a person." The original said "Any attempt to injure, harm, malign, or harass a person because of race, religious belief, color, sexual/affectional orientation, national origin, disability, age, or gender."

The second segment used to read "Direct verbal or physical assaults upon an individual because of their racial, ethnic, or sexual/affectional identity." The words 'Direct Verbal" were removed. The segment stating "Denigrating written/verbal communications (including the use of telephones, emails, and computers) directed toward an individual because of their characteristics or beliefs" was completely removed from the policy.

The segment stating "Posting, painting, engraving or otherwise displaying derogatory slogans or symbols on personal or state property" was changed to"Posting, painting, engraving or otherwise displaying any sign, slogan or symbol on State property. Official announcements or other informational material distributed by Georgia Tech are excluded."