AUDREY REED
News Editor
The aftermath of digital photos being used as cause for a judicial hearing has arrived.
To date, 47 students have had hearings, either judicial or administrative, according to Dean of Student Affairs Mark Davis. Of those 47, no action was taken on four cases, 11 students were given warnings, 31 have been put on probation, and one student with prior alcohol violations was suspended. Five Greek groups have also had hearings.
Seaver students have responded by making reference to Pepperdine’s policies on their Web sites. Davis said he wants to remind students that the university is not using the Internet to monitor student activity, nor is taking disciplinary action based on personal opinions.
Davis said that in all 47 cases, students have been able to explain the photos.
“To date, the only action taken by the Judicial Affairs office has been based on alcohol violations clearly depicted in pictures that were brought to the attention of the university by concerned students, faculty and staff,” Davis wrote in an e-mail. “These pictures were posted in online photo albums. Many of the albums gave the title of the party … It would have been wrong for the University to ignore these clear violations.”
Davis said that a new policy on student Web sites has not been drafted because “students are not disciplined for having online pictures. They are disciplined for misconduct depicted in the pictures that is already covered in the Code of Conduct in the Student Handbook.”
The Code of Conduct, which covers activities on and off campus, does not list every source of information because there are so many types of sources, Davis said.
“If students think it is important to list examples of the types of information that can lead to disciplinary action, I’ll be happy to work with the Student Government Association on adding some additional language to the Student Handbook,” Davis said.
But some students aren’t buying the explanation that Pepperdine isn’t surfing student sites.
Senior Blaine LaBron said he can’t believe students would turn in other students.
“Even if I hated someone, I wouldn’t think to turn in their online photo library,” he said.
LaBron was one of the first people at Pepperdine to voice his concern about administrators looking at student Web sites through his Facebook account.
His Facebook profile has the following message addressed to Davis alongside his photo:
“Thank you all for hiring a team to check up on the Pepperdine student pictures so anyone drinking alcoholic beverages can be sent to inpatient alcohol rehab … I know with an aggressive approach toward conduct code offenders on the Internet we may some day be a top 50 school again.”
LaBron posted this Aug. 30, the day after the Graphic published the article “Online pics stir paranoia.”
LaBron said he did this to raise student awareness. Not only have Pepperdine students expressed their support of his profile photo, he said, but students at other schools, some he doesn’t know, have also asked him about the situation via Facebook.
Following suit, senior Mike Mirliss also responded to the administration’s actions through his Facebook profile photo.
His photo satirically points out possible code of conduct breaches from “bottle of whiskey” and “weed” to “premarital sex off camera” to “evolution taking place.”
“Everyone was freaking out,” Mirliss said. “I’m not doing anything wrong. Why not play this out as long as I can?”
Davis said he understands that there are a wide range of opinions about alcohol policies but said everyone agrees that drinking and driving and binge drinking are “risky behaviors.”
“If you live your life with integrity, you don’t have to worry about being caught,” Davis said.
09-29-2005