The Honor Committee’s main goal this semester has been to work toward creating a proposal to make possible a student vote on a multiple sanction system. The two proposed constitutional amendments that the Committee has drafted will be on the ballot in February.
The first proposal would create the opportunity for the committee to adopt a multiple sanction system, if desired by the student body.
The second proposal would permit the committee to ask questions using the ballot, such that if a question is answered affirmatively by a majority of voters, the Committee will enact a response within a year.
The proposals were drafted based on feedback from Honor Committee events including the popular assembly held in October. The assembly was a chance for students to meet in small groups with honor representatives and discuss their opinions about a multiple sanction system.
In addition to working on proposals for a multiple sanction system, the committee also worked to increase diversity and engagement in the honor system throughout the semester. Through events organized by Vice Chair for Community Relations VJ Jenkins, a third-year College student, the diversity in the new class of support officers was increased.
Honor Committee Chair Faith Lyons, fourth-year Commerce student, said that of the 38 new support officers, half are male and half are female. The students come from a variety of ethnic backgrounds, and identify as Asian, Middle Eastern, African-American and Latino.
Students also came from a variety of schools, with eight support officers enrolled in the Engineering School and one student each from the Law School and the Architecture School.
This semester the committee also introduced an essay contest in conjunction with the Black Student Alliance, Latino Student Alliance and Asian Student Union for minority students to submit a 750-word opinion essay on the topic of honor and student culture at the University.
The six winners selected will receive $500 and the opportunity to serve as a liaison between the committee and their communities as a way to better integrate honor into the University community.
The Committee also launched the “dorm rep” program this year, which provides students with the opportunity to be more engaged with the honor system without going through support officer training.
Lyons said, “It’s a way to push back against the idea that honor is exclusive, and offering more opportunities for people to be involved.”
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