Fox Balks on Student Call For New Discipline Review

Dean Fox refused yesterday to set up a review commission to investigate the student discipline system at the College, referring members of the Students Rights Committee of the Student Assembly who made the request, to Dean Rosovsky.

A rights committee member, who asked not to be identified, called the referral to Rosovsky "the classical bureaucratic runaround," saying that members of the rights committee had originally gone to Rosovsky for an appointment, but were told he had "no time" and were sent to Fox.

Surprise, Surprise, Surprise

Fox said the decision was based on "misunderstandings." "I understood that they were asking essentially for information--it only developed yesterday that they were asking for disciplinary review," he said.

Committe members said they are requesting a "comprehensive" review of disciplinary structures, including the Administrative Board, the Commission of Inquiry, and the Committee on Rights and Responsibilities (CRR).

Spheres of Influence

Fox said that, while he has the power to establish review committees--such as the Dowling Committee on student government--the dean of the Faculty should establish a disciplinary review committee because it would primarily be concerned with the CRR, a University-wide institution.

Rights committee members said, however, that the "comprehensive" review they want includes the Ad Board, which is a College-wide institution.

Familiar Ground

The issues that the review committee would address are "familiar" ones that have been "thoroughly thrashed out," Fox said.

"In a community such as ours, it is always important to take a fresh look at such things, but it's a matter of how much freshness you bring," he said.

Members of the rights committee said that if the issues were continually discussed, "it might be because they are important." The administration has never examined discipline with a joint committee in which students were equally represented, the members said.

"It's one thing to have faculty members look into it--but it's a very different thing for faculty and students to discuss it together," Andrew B. Herrmann '83, chairman of the Student Assembly, said yesterday.

Fox also told the rights committee that the current debate on the Dowling Committee's report on student government may make it an awkward time to examine disciplinary procedure, Jacques T. Ya Deau '82-3, a rights committee member, said yesterday.

Members of the rights committee said that they will take their request to Rosovsky as Fox suggested.