######################################################### The Student Voice Issue 4, No. 4 1.24.1997 ######################################################### 354+ Readers ######################################################### WARNING: This newsletter is only for open and objectively- minded people. It may contain content that challenges your core beliefs and values about PCC. Be careful. ######################################################### Who We Are: The Student Voice is a weekly, on-line commentary and editorial page about the problems that are prevalent at Pensacola Christian College. As an institution that considers itself at the pinnacle of true Christianity, PCC ought to be willing to back up its practices with Scripture, but unfortunately, when one compares the "system" of PCC with true Christianity, PCC falls far short. Our purpose is three-fold: (1) To provide public exposure regarding the practices at PCC; (2) To compare PCC dogma with Scriptural principle, generally accepted societal behavior, and the law of reason; (3) By bringing about this exposure, to see PCC make some positive changes in the areas of discipline, communication with parents and students, church practice, ethical behavior, and educational philosophy. Acts 17:11 "These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so." ######################################################### QUOTES OF THE WEEK "Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God." - Thomas Jefferson "Men are not open to truth or reason. They cannot be reached by rational argument. The mind is powerless against them. Yet we have to deal with them. If we want to accomplish anything, we have to deceive them into letting us accomplish it. Or force them. They understand nothing else. We cannot expect their support for any endeavor of the intellect, for any goal of the spirit. They are nothing but vicious animals. They are greedy, self-indulgent, predatory dollar-chasers. . . ." - Dr. Stadler to Dagny Taggert, from ATLAS SHRUGGED, Ayn Rand "Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything." - George Bernard Shaw "But on those occasions where you've really been mistreated, action is called for." - Tony Pittarese, PCC professor, from his Business Page ######################################################### TABLE OF CONTENTS Page 1. I. Voice Announcements II. Correction III. More Thoughts On Fear, by A.W. Tozur IV. Essays "Standardless Standards: PCC's Ultimate 'Law' " by Paul S. Perdue Page 2. V. Your Comments VI. Have You Heard The One About. . . ? ######################################################### I. VOICE ANNOUNCEMENTS >>> If you would like any copies of back issues, please let us know. However, we would ask that you limit your request to 2 issues per request in order for us to be more efficient. Once you have received the two issues, then please feel free to request 2 more. Here is a list of Voice issues and other information: The Student Voice Introductory Letter Transcript of Dr. Horton's comments made about The Student Voice Issue 1, Nos. 1 - 4 Issue 2, Nos. 1 - 5 Issue 3, No. 1 ("Rules Compilation," Version 1) Issue 3, Nos. 2 - 3 Issue 4, Nos. 1 - 3 >>> We are in the process of putting together an "official" web page where back issues, the Rules Compilation and other interesting information will be displayed. Please stay tuned. >>> If you do not wish to receive The Student Voice, please drop us an e-mail and let us know. If you know of someone who would be interested in receiving The Student Voice, let us know. ######################################################### II. CORRECTION In last week's edition of The Voice we printed a story in the "Have You Heard The One About. . .?" section about a missionary couple that we have come to learn from the individual who sent us the story that it contained some factual innacuracies. We apologize for this misstatement, and we will be pulling the story from further issues that we send out to those requesting back issues. The following is the letter from the individual who sent us the original story: << Regarding the story of the missionary couple I sent to you that was printed in last weeks issue of the Voice. In several e-mail replies I have been informed that there were some aspects of the story which I had not yet known about. Although I still do not believe the actions of the college in this incident to be God honoring I would like to sincerely apologize for not getting all the facts before sending the story to you. I reassured the Voice that the story was true when I hadn't received all the facts, and that is my fault alone. The Voice was not responsible for this story in any way. Neither did the missionary couple mentioned in the story or her sister have anything to do with it. I did not lie. I had no desire to make a false representation of the events that occured, but it was my responsibility to check it out more thoroughly which I didn't. Although as said before I still do not believe the acts of the college to be God honoring in this situation. Thank you. >> We regret any confusion - The Editors. ######################################################### III. MORE THOUGHTS ON FEAR [From a selection of the book, OF GOD AND MEN, by A.W. Tozur] Carnal fear may take either of two opposite directions. It may make us afraid to do what we know we should do, or not to do what we have reason to think people expect us to do. There is a foolish consistency which brings us into bondage to the consciences of other people. Our Christian testimony has created a certain expectation in the minds of our friends, and rather than jeopardize our standing with them we dutifully act in accordance with their expectations even though we have no personal conviction about the matter. We are simply afraid not to do what we know they expected us to do. This morality by public pressure is not pure morality at all. At best it is a timid righteousness of doubtful parentage; at worst it is the child of weakness and fear. A free Christian should act from within with a total disregard for the opinions of others. If a course is right he should take it because it is right, not because he is afraid not to take it. And if it is wrong he should avoid it though he lose every earthly treasure and even his very life as a consequence. Fear of the opinion of the group tends to regiment the members of denominations and churches and force them into a cooky-cutter uniformity. The desire to stand well within our won circle of religious friends destroys originality and makes imitators of us. Various churches have their approved experiences, their religious accents, even their accepted religious tones; these become standard for the group and are to the local fellowship what circumcision was to Israel, a ceremonial token of acceptance into the clan. The great fault in all this is that it shifts the life motivation from within to without, from God to our fellow man. Any act done because we are afraid not to do it is of the same moral quality as the act that is not done because we are afraid to do it. Fear, not love and faith, dictates the conduct, and whatsoever is not of faith is sin. The way to escape this double snare is simple. Make a complete surrender to God; love Him with all your heart and love every man for His sake. Determine to obey your own convictions as they crystallize within you as a result of unceasing prayer and constant study of the Scriptures. After that you may ignore the expectations of your friends as well as the criticisms of your enemies. You will experience first the shocked surprise of the regimented army of lock-step believers, then their grudging admiration; and if you continue to walk the way of love and courage they may take heart from your example, throw off the bondage of fear and go forth as ransomed men and women to walk in the sweet liberty wherewith Christ has made them free. ######################################################### IV. ESSAYS "Standardless Standards: PCC's Ultimate 'Law' " Part 1 By: Paul S. Perdue Imagine living in a society where the posted speed limits were not set out in definable numbers; rather, they were posted in terms like "Do Not Drive Too Fast" or "It Is Illegal To Drive Faster Than What Is Safe To Drive On This Road." If you were to be driving along the highway, and these were the types of signs you saw, how would you determine how fast or how slow to drive? (Some of us would continue as we always have, but this is beside the point. . . .) What is "too fast"? What is "safe"? Or more importantly, what does the highway patrolman think? These are questions that could not be answered until you had broken someone else's subjective interpretation of these posted "speed limits." In our society, however, this has been determined to be unacceptable public policy. Why? Because for an act to be punishable by the proper authorities, people need to know precisely what that act is. Imagine a plan of salvation that required us to live "good" lives in order to obtain redemption, a plan that did not set out any other requirements than that we must do what is "right." How would we know what was "good" or what was "right"? What sort of life would we have to live? How would we ever enjoy life knowing that maybe our life was not "good" enough. This would be left to each of our own finite and certainly less than divine subjective interpretation. This would be left to speculation and determination at a time when "life" would no longer be capable of redemption. Fortunately for our eternal souls, God has given us exact standards by which we can know we are saved (see the book of Romans). This sounds quite far-fetched, and most of us can easily discern the problems and difficulties it would be to maintain such systems of vague and undefinable "standards," yet these are precisely the principles that are used to govern the "community" at PCC. The PCC system contains few real "standards" for students to be able to rely upon. There are few actual "rules" at PCC, and leave it to The Student Voice to be the only one willing to maintain such a statement. A "standard" is a "means of DETERMINING what a thing should be; a DEFINITE rule, MEASURE or principle established by authority; something set up as AN EXAMPLE TO FOLLOW." (emphasis added) A "rule" is a "prescribed GUIDE for conduct or action." (emphasis added) Inherent in these two concepts are (1) a definiteness by which one knows what the bounds of that required or prohibited conduct are and (2) something that remains fairly constant and predictable. PCC, of course, prides itself on its "standards" and its "rules," but those same guidelines which the school often incorrectly describes as "standards" and "rules" are often nothing more than open-ended, undefined "values" that no student can be reasonably expected to understand, predict and measure his or her actions by. Yet these same nebulous "values" are what is often used to sanction students and even to expel them from school. This, folks, is unjust. One of the more specific goals of The Voice is to see PCC get rid of its current Student Handbook (although that is somewhat of a misnomer), and to replace it with a comprehensive Handbook that contains every single rule, defined and proscribed as such, so that each student, parent, faculty member and staff member will know exactly what behavior is and what is not required. This essay is one in a series of essays that will go through the current Student Handbook and point out the problems and difficulties that need to be dealt with, and we will offer solutions to these problems so that no more students will be expelled on only the whims and unsubstantiated notions of the administration. In our society, there is a concept known as the Principle of Legality (also sometimes referred to as the Rule of Lenity). This principle stands for the proposition that no person will be convicted of a crime and punished for something that is not specifically laid out in statutory form. In other words, if conduct is not prohibited by a written law that is clear and specific, no citizen can be punished for it, regardless of how "bad" it is. "The same point may be put in terms of the relation of law to morals. That the criminal law derives from moral values cannot be doubted; some notion of right and wrong necessarily underlies the decision of what to punish. The principle of legality, however, does not identify which values the penal law should seek to enforce; it merely specifies the appropriate way to make that decision. In other words, the principle of legality asserts that certain constraints on the process of crime definition are essential to the ethical integrity of the criminal law as a system of rules, and it seeks to maintain those constraints without regard to the content of the rules chosen. Today, few would dispute the desirability in principle of advance legislative specification of criminal conduct." [CRIMINAL LAW, 2nd edition. Low, Peter W.; Jeffries, John Calvin; & Bonnie, Richard J. Foundation Press, p. 34]. The rest of our society has recognized the principle that it is not good to have restricted conduct that is unknown, and "standards" which are vague and thereby difficult to follow. Why cannot PCC understand this? Well, it is true that someone who is able to maintain a society with this type of vague authority will have much more control, because the general population will always be in fear of violating the authority's view of its own vague values, particularly those whose minds are willing to intellectually challenge conventional thinking and are thus unwilling to simply follow the pack as if beckoned by the mere thought of more green grass beyond the next stream. Control, of course, is very important to those in charge at PCC, no one would deny that, and the best way to keep the most control over its subjects is to stay away from precisely defined standards of conduct. Let us first start out this series by examining the ultimate "standard," a standard which is, oddly enough, not even printed in the Student Handbook. So, while the administration will tell the students to read the Handbook carefully as it lays out the "rules" and "guidelines" for the students to follow, they will nevertheless expel students based on the "ultimate" law which is not even in the Student Handbook! This "rule" is stated in the front of the college catalogue, and it states, in part: "Attendance at Pensacola Christian College is a privilege and not a right. Students forfeit this privilege if they do not CONFORM TO THE STANDARDS AND IDEALS of work and life of the College, and the College may insist on the withdrawal of a student at any time that the student, IN THE OPINION OF THE COLLEGE, does not CONFORM TO THE SPIRIT OF THE MINISTRY." (emphasis added) This should be an insult to the intelligence, integrity and common sense of every student who has ever walked through the doors of PCC. What this is saying is that PCC is willing to take your hard-earned money, your time, and your efforts expended in working towards a degree, but regardless of all that, they can and will let you go FOR NO REASON AT ALL. This is the fine print. 1. This needs to be put in the Student Handbook. For the administration to keep this out of the Handbook and still use it as the sole basis for expelling a student is highly unethical, for PCC holds the Student Handbook as being that which contains the rules and regulations to follow. Dr. Horton even sets this out in his opening remarks: "This student handbook contains the regulations and procedures that govern student life. . . ." WHY, THEN, IS THE "NON-CONFORMING POLICY" NOT LAID OUT IN THIS HANDBOOK? A student looks to the catalogue for academic information and to the Student Handbook for the regulations. Therefore, this very important regulation should be in the Student Handbook, and to keep it out has the appearance of trying to be less than up-front with students. 2. Define the "spirit of the ministry" Is this a terribly unreasonable request to ask? Do not the students (and parents) have a right - yes, a right, to know what the "spirit" is that they must conform to? If anyone knows the answer to this question, please let us know (and then how about letting the students know)? The fact is that this is about as vague as one can get. The "spirit of the ministry"? Who are they trying to fool? If it is possible to figure out what this means from a practical living standpoint, it would take several years to figure it out, and for a brand new student to begin immediately living under this "rule" and yet still have a sense of freedom is, I submit to you, virtually impossible. The fact of the matter is that every one of us would have a different view of the "spirit." I would wager that not even the individual faculty members could come up with the same definition. In fact, when different administration members were asked what it means, they REFUSED TO GIVE AN ANSWER!! This is being up-front? This is being honest? Or is there really, and intentionally, no definition? How, in the name of common sense, can the administration expect students to know what this means if they are not even willing to tell a student what it means? And how can they expect students to know how to follow it? The sanction for not "conforming" to this spirit is expulsion. That is what the above-quoted paragraph states very clearly. Think about that. A "standard" that will not and has not been defined, a "standard" that has no recognizable definition and measurability, and yet a "standard" that is the ultimate "law of the land" will be, and has been, used to expel students. Why? Because they did not "conform." Conform to what? And how, then, does one "conform"? To conform, one must know of that which he or she is to conform TO. I cannot conform to something I cannot define, this is ridiculous! And yet when asked this specific question directly, Dr. Goddard, Mr. Ohman, and Dr. Horton refuse to answer the question. And some of you still think you can justify this? 3. The "opinion of the College." Let me just explain what the "opinion of the College" means. It means whatever the administration wants it to mean, and this is ALWAYS at the student's expense. Not to mention the fact that this wording is very imprecise, it is also as vague as the "spirit of the ministry" clause. It is imprecise because it is not the opinion of the "college" that matters. The "college" is the entire community - faculty, staff, AND STUDENTS. This makes it sound as if there were some sort of body that represents the "college" that makes this determination, and I assure you, as I am sure you need no assurance, that this is NOT the case. The "opinion of the College" is NOT the opinion of the college; rather, it is the OPINION OF A FEW ADMINISTRATORS, or perhaps the Hortons alone. If PCC were, in fact, a "community" or a "city" as it often likes to characterize itself, this "law" would not stand up for a second. It would be ruled unconstitutional for vagueness very quickly and very easily, because the rest of American civilization has come to recognize the principle of legality, the principle that in a community, defining the standards of conduct must be clearly spelled out so that those who are expected to abide by the standards know what is required of them. This is hardly an unreasonable request. Define what it means, and put it in the Student Handbook. Call me crazy, but if PCC is going to brag about its "Christian standards," don't you think it ought to, at the very least, let those who are subject to these "standards" know what they are? ######################################################### V. YOUR COMMENTS The opinions, ideas, and facts stated in this section do not necessarily represent those of The Student Voice. We make our best efforts to be fair and to verify factual statements. ------------------------------------------ [This is from an alumnus regarding PCC's taking away e-mail and internet access from the students - eds.] POINT ME TO TEMPLE AND WHERE ARE THOSE MONEY CHANGERS!!! HEY ADMINISTRATION, AREN'T YOU LISTENING!?! This is a classic example for the entire purpose of your dreaded StudentV. This morning I read in the StudentV about the new digital telephone system at PCC. Guess your timing is impeccable. We (alumni and students) knew the telephones were long over due for an overhaul. If this is true and it denies any internet access my heart goes out to the student body. Email is an awesome resource. What I would have given for such an opportunity when I was a student. Don't cut off the student's communication with their loved ones. You are putting students who have used this means of communication in a state of abandonment. Oh please tell me there is someone in the administration who remembers what it is like to be a college student? It is not even humane to detach students from ANY kind outside communication. What's next? The phones, the mail. There may even be a need to ban automobiles. Why not go all the way and lock the gates after each student's first greek rush and hand out keys instead of diplomas at commencement? Alumnus of '94 ------------------------------------------ [This is the kind of logic and reasoning The Voice deals with more often than we would like to admit - eds.] Hey Paul Perdue, GET A LIFE!!!!! Your Best Friend P.S. I took the liberty of giving everyone at PCC you REAL email address!!! ------------------------------------------ [This is a letter from a father of a PCC student - eds.] Dear Voice, I have enjoyed reading the voice, and thought I would comment. Most of your letters have been from students or alumni, and as the parent of a student I thought I might add a slightly different view. To start with, the fact that the school doesn't offer a student run paper, or any means for the views of the students to be heard, it's only natural that an "underground" vehicle for expresing views would be established. As you continue, just remember to express your concerns in a Christlike manner, as you are dealing with brothers in the Lord, even though many of their views are misguided... I have read on many occasions in the voice where writers are "letting off steam" at the policies and rules, and the way they are enforced, especially the unwritten subjective ones. However, let me ask readers this question, What is it that you are trying to accomplish? If your goal is to "vent steam" then you have earned an "A" grade. I haven't been able to see where complaints are followed with suggestions to improve the system. As a business manager, I listen much closer and take action more quickly when employees bring possible solutions to issues rather than just complaining about the situation. It shows me that they have given thought to the process, and are willing to be active in the changes, rather than expecting someone else to do the thinking and suggest change. I agree that there are many areas that can be improved. What changes would you recomend? What vision do you have for your school? I challenge the readers to create a new set of suggested rules and present them to the Administration for consideration. It is normal behavior for them to be defensive when you offer no suggestions, only complaints. I'm not sure what reponse you may get, however I believe this is the proper course of action. You will not move this mountain all at once, but why not try one rock at a time? What have you got to lose? I do not agree with many of the rules. Allow me to explain my situation. In high school (Christian private), my son was class president -11th, student body president-12th, at graduation he was given 2 Christian leadership awards, and given the "who's who among American high school students" award. He then was given a "Christian Leadership" scholarship to PCC. He has always shown good judgement in making decisions, and we trust him completely. Then we ship him off to PCC to be treated like the mature young adult he is, right? ...Wrong!!! Back to pre junior high days all over again...He is miserable, due to the rules and the way he and his friends are being treated. He wants to change colleges like 5 of his class mates have done at the end of this last semester. We see no value in many of the rules, they appear to be for the purpose of "complete control". What purpose do they serve? Preparation for the "real world"?...not... Two weeks socialed for touching with a pencil?...get real...etc,etc. I've heard about them all. These students want to get a good Christian education, and they deserve to have fun and be happy while doing it. PCC, you have failed these 5 students, and the many others that have dropped out due to the treatment they received... Shame on you PCC... Signed, Disappointed Dad ------------------------------------------ Dear Mr. Perdue, I find your newsletter very misleading and destructive. I was very alarmed when I read your recent artictle entitled "Fearocracy". You threw around some very strong terms like "Tiennaman Suare intellectual oppression" and "behind the iron gates of Pcc" you make it sound like students who attend PCC attend a communist country. I find these comments very distasteful. There is no basis for these comments to be made about Pensacola Christian College. I am not saying Pensacola is perfect but it is a good Christian school. I am not saying their should not be comments made about the college but because a FEW bitter students had a bad experience does not give the right to make comments that have no basis or fact to support these statements. I agree with the professor that your time and energy could be well spent by doing what God commands in the New Testament by spreading the Gospel and telling others about Him. Get busy doing something for the Lord Our Saviour and not being a stumblingblock to other Christians. (Which God says not to be) From A PCC Student, ( Who is not Afraid to print his name) DANIEL ELMER PORTER ------------------------------------------ [This is from a graduate, B--- in response to last week's issue - eds.] We loved the latest issue. Definitely Pulitzer material. Well, it's almost time for the students to come back to town, which can only mean one thing: lots of students walking down Davis Highway and clogging the detergent aisle at Wal-Mart every Saturday. ------------------------------------------ [This is from a graduate in response to the negative reaction to the PCC professor's comments (Issue 4, No. 1) criticizing The Voice while simultaneously admitting to having never read it - eds.] I would like to comment about all the people who have slammed the PCC professor. He was trying to say that the student voice should do something more constructive with e-mail and the Internet like using it to get people saved. He was not necessarily criticizing the student voice. He did not because he could not, and he knows that. This does not seem very close minded to me like everyone is acusing him of being. I also wish everyone would get off the legalism bandwagon. Legalism is salvation by works not grace through faith like the Bible says. Last time I checked PCC still believes in salvation by grace through faith. Examples of legalistic religeons are Catholacism and Islam where what works you do 'entitle' you to heaven, allah, or whatever. PCC is not legalistic. Thank you wowo37@aol.com ------------------------------------------ [This is from the sister of a current student - eds.] Thanks for adding me to your mailing list. My brother is a graduate of PCC, and he rightly assumed I would be interested in receiving your letter. I agree from what I know of his experiences that there are too many "gray" areas in the rulebook at PCC. It seems that the school would benefit (not to mention that it is just plain more honest) from being more specific in the rulebook. In the education courses that PCC teaches, the professors say how important it is for teachers to let students know what is expected of them. After all, God Himself did that for us in His Word. The other thing that concerns me about PCC is their lack of academic integrity. They offer majors that are not fully developed (a new major often has only the faculty and coursework to grow one year at a time), and several of the freshman level courses use A Beka high school textbooks (World History in Christian Perspective--for example). Education majors are not eligible to seek licensure from the state of Florida, but that information is not advertised to incoming or prospective students anywhere. I know someone who graduated from PCC with a major in Early Childhood Ed., and was then unable to get a job in a state licensed day care center because she was not eligible for state licensure. It is not ethical for PCC to offer a major wherein the graduates are limited in the job market. PCC needs to admit that because they set themselves up as an academic institution and they take money from the student, the school is ACCOUNTABLE for its policies. Keep up the good work! L------- ------------------------------------------ [This is from R---, another parent of a current student - eds.] I read with interest your "Public Apology" dated 12-30-96. I wonder if you sent an apology to Pensacola Christian College. Thats where you really should have addressed it. I think you have done a great disservice to the school and should be ashamed of the things written about the school. You mention your journal is one of integrity, honesty and Scriptural principle-exactly what Scriptural principle is being used here? If you had such a bad experience at PCC why didnt you just leave and now that you are out of there what is your purpose in bad-mouthing the school over the internet. You indicate you have a degree in Law-I would be hard pressed to come to you with a problem knowing that after it was all said and done you may blab it all over the internet. My purpose in writing at this time is to ask what did you expect to accomplish with all this. I doubt that you really think you could change the rules at PCC. Problem is the rules were there when you went and will still be there for a long time to come. It is Dr Hortons school and he can make whatever rules he wishes. The only thing that you have managed to do is get the E-Mail service taken away from the students. As the parent of a current student those kids really appreciated the chance to keep in touch with parents and friends via internet. No thanks to you that opportunity is now gone. In closing I think one statement could sum it up-Get on with your life. ------------------------------------------ I am continually amazed by the Christians who write the Voice claiming that we have no rights! Where did they get such cockeyed notions?? As Christians, we have all rights under God--WE ARE SONS!!! (Please read John 1:12-13) Why do so many persist in acting as orphans?? Sonship by adoption carries not only spiritual rights, but full legal rights. Sons are also guaranteed a full measure of the inheritance. For those of us who have children of our own, this can be understood even more fully. What parent does not look at their child and wish for him to be happy and fulfilled, desiring only the best for him? How much more must our heavenly Father look at us with his loving eyes, unblemished by the scales of pride and personal agenda, and desire for us to be happy beyond our wildest dreams. I can not imagine what it would feel like to know that the resources of the universe were at my disposal for my child's happiness if he would but recognize my gift of love. Please, Christians, WAKE UP!! The only rights we lose at salvation can be better described as bonds--the "right" to be under the law, the "right" to be under man's whims and interpretation of the Bible, the "right" to follow laws as the means of salvation, etc.. Paul describes our rights as sons as a freedom from the spirit of bondage (Rom. 8:14-17) and a freedom to claim liberty (Gal. 3:26-4:11, 5:1). What greater RIGHT could exist? Paul is careful to exhort Christians to use this liberty (or personal freedom) as a means for greater love for the world around them (Gal. 5:13). Take a look at the "rights" of the Christian as described in Eph. 5:22-23. Oh, by the way, if you buy the "no rights" theory-- hook, line, and sinker, I would advise you to consider moving your American citizenship to another country. Like it or not, this country was founded by religious leaders who believed wholeheartedly, indeed were willing to die for such belief, that we are assured "certain unalienable rights". These men rebelled against the popular legalistic rule of England and the Church of England to form a new nation based on the "radical" ideas of liberty and equality that has so long ago been taught by a liberal Jewish leader named Jesus Christ. Melanie Ruter-Jones, Class of '92 Brimelseb@aol.com P.S. Since I am writing this on Martin Luther King Day, I would like to encourage everyone to read Letters From a Birmingham Jail. MLK was a man who particularly and realistically understood the balance between rights and compliance. ######################################################### VI. HAVE YOU HEARD THE ONE ABOUT. . . ? The opinions, ideas, and facts stated in this section do not necessarily represent those of The Student Voice. We make our best efforts to be fair and to verify factual statements. ------------------------------------------ [From a former student - eds.] Because of the fear that is instilled into the hearts of students, when one receives a faculty call slip, it is a very nerve-racking experience. It doesn't matter whether the student has done anything wrong or not, the fear is still present because he knows that he has already been found guilty and sentenced before his trial even begins. Those of you who have been there know what I mean. Now, take that fear and double it -- you now have the level of fear experienced when you get a phone call at 7:00 in the morning to come to the Dean of Men's office immediately. This was the case in late November of my Sophomore year. I got dressed quickly (making sure to not wear my pegged, double stitched, or leg-pocketed pants). When I got up to the second floor, there were three other guys sitting in the mall area waiting. We started talking trying to find the common thread that would link us together. One of the guys asked me if I knew E---. I said that I did -- we went to school together in the first through the third grades. But E--- and I traveled in different circles at college.....I hadn't really known him at college. Well, we were called in one by one and asked questions about E---. Did we know him? Did we know his family? Did he drink? Did he smoke? (It's amazing how many times these questions about alcohol and tobacco come up even when they have nothing to do with the offense.) Did we know if he had ever met a woman off campus? After we each had been questioned in turn, we were allowed to go to our first hour class. A few days later, E--- called me to apologize for getting me involved. What had happened was that his parents and sister had come down for Thanksgiving. His sister was a senior in high school at the time, but she looked very mature for her age, and is extremely pretty. E--- had been seen off campus with her, but rather than assume that this was a family member down for the Thanksgiving holiday (showing trust in this mature adult student), this staff person assumed that he was sneaking off campus with a woman for sexual reasons. E--- was dragged up to the Dean's offices first thing next morning when he showed up for classes. That means that when he showed up for class (about 8:00), we had already been interrogated before he had ever been given a chance to tell the truth. Talk about a lack of trust in the student and suspecting evil. ######################################################### The Student Voice is: Paul S. Perdue lupos Please feel free to voice your thoughts, stories, and opinions. Thank you for reading The Voice! ######################################################### THE STUDENT VOICE, PCC's alternative newsletter