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Despite Administrative Pushback and Theft, University of Tulsaā€™s ā€˜Collegianā€™ Produces Exceptional Reporting

FIRE often celebrates examples of impressive student journalism, especially by student newspapers that face threats from their university administration or other students because of their reporting. During this yearā€™s Free Press Week celebration, weā€™d like to focus on the University of Tulsaā€™s (TUā€™s) student paper, the Collegian, which has produced outstanding journalism in its coverage of TUā€™s unjust suspension of student Trey Barnett.

Despite with unnamed sanctions if the Collegian released ā€œconfidential informationā€ (which, of course, TU administrators did not deign to identify or explain), Kyle Walker and Conor Fellin last week on TUā€™s violation of its own policies in its suspension of Barnett.

Walker and Fellin criticize many decisions TU Senior Vice Provost Winona Tanaka made in regard to Barnettā€™s case, including her choice to interview only Barnettā€™s accuserā€™s witnesses; her refusal to accept Barnettā€™s evidence; and her punishment of Barnett for simply talking to his husband, an exculpatory witness, about the case. The entire piece is worth a close read, but the Collegianā€™s focus on TUā€™s denial of a hearing for Barnett is particularly important:

According to all of the documents available to the Collegian, Barnett was never provided with a hearing. As such, he was never confronted with the vast majority of the evidence recorded in the decision, never confronted with the specific arguments used by Tanaka and never provided with an opportunity to present witnesses on his behalf.

ā€œThereā€™s no solid evidence,ā€ Barnett said. ā€œAnd if there is, it was never given to me.ā€

The Student Code of Conduct states that all students shall have the opportunity ā€œto hear all information against (them) and to question all witnesses against (them)ā€ and ā€œto present relevant information and witnesses on his/her behalf.ā€

The next day, TU President Steadman Upham emailed students to explain TUā€™s side of the story, arguing (poorly) that the Collegian misrepresented the facts because Barnettā€™s case was dealt with under TUā€™s Policy on Harassment rather than the Student Code of Conduct. Again, Walker had a , and he defended the Collegianā€™s original reporting, stating:

The Collegian stands by its reporting in ā€œTU administration suspended student without hearing.ā€ The Policy on Harassment states multiple times that the Student Code of Conduct still applies in harassment cases.

Under the section entitled ā€œFormal Complaint Processā€ the Policy on Harassment states that ā€œinvestigations, and if appropriate, hearings shall be conducted in accordance with the appropriate governing document (See ā€˜Who is Coveredā€™).ā€

Under the section ā€œWho is Covered,ā€ it states that the Policy on Harassment ā€œshall be applied and interpreted in conjunction with the following existing documents: ā€¦ ā€˜The Student Code of Conductā€™ and ā€˜The University of Tulsa Statement on Rights, Freedoms and Responsibilities.ā€™ā€

As reported in our original story, the Student Code of Conduct reads under Section D. 4 Procedures: ā€œIn all cases, a student accused of one or more violations of the student code has the right to a hearing.ā€

It further states in Section E. 5 Rights of the Accused that ā€œno student shall be found partially/fully responsible for an offense without having been afforded each of the following rights, except with respect of those rights specifically and knowingly waived by the student in writing: ā€¦ 2. The opportunity at the proceedings to hear all information against the student and to question all the witnesses against the accused student. 3. The opportunity at the proceeding to present relevant information and witnesses on his/her behalf.ā€

Itā€™s reassuring to see that the °ä“Ē±ō±ō±š²µ¾±²¹²Ōā€™s student journalists are not tolerating TUā€™s attempts to so blatantly ignore its own policies and bully the paper into silence.

On Monday, Walker had to his portfolio of articles lambasting TU for violating its policies and suspending a student without a hearing. In it, Walker tells his fellow students that he hopes they enjoy reading TUā€™s student conduct policies, ā€œbecause thatā€™s all the good youā€™re going to get out of those policies if you do something to displease the powers that be.ā€ Basically, Walker has had enough of TUā€™s excuses:

Iā€™d be in a more charitable mood except that the school deliberately created an atmosphere of uncertainty and fear to discourage us from publishing our story about Trey Barnett. When that story hit the national press, the school rapidly backpedaled. A spokesperson from University Relations went so far as to tell the Student Press Law Center that she was not aware of any policies the Collegian could have violated.

We canā€™t get a straight answer out of these guys. They wouldnā€™t tell us at the time what policies we might have violated in investigating and publishing that story, and now they tell us that no such policies exist? Whatā€™ll it be, TU?

°Ā²¹±ō°ģ±š°łā€™s should inspire all other student journalists who face punishment or censorship for reporting stories or being critical of their university administrations.

Unfortunately, someone at TU definitely did not want to see the Collegianā€™s The Collegian reports that from nine TU buildings last Thursday. The Collegian may be distributed for free, this isnā€™t an egregious act of theft. Student newspapers cost real money to produce, and businesses advertise in student newspapers with the expectation that their advertisements will reach students and not be thrown en masse into the trash.

The Collegian reported the newspaper theft to TUā€™s Campus Security, which has launched an investigation into the matter. FIREhopes TU takes this theft seriously, regardless of the paperā€™s critical reporting on the university. It might as well, because TU really should know by now that no one can just make this story disappear.

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