The Government of the Student Body has requested feedback from the campus community regarding its recently passed draft report, called “Principles of Community,” which it hopes will improve the university environment.

“After talking with focus groups, we coded the responses and looked at documents from other campuses with principles in place,” said Penny Rice, one of the chairpersons of the project. “We then took this information and found common themes which we based these principles on.”

Rice, director of the Margaret Sloss Women’s Center, said there has already been a lot of feedback from faculty, staff and students since its public release Jan. 20.

“I definitely agree that these are important and the community of ISU should work toward implementing these goals and principles,” said Emmeline Hallam, senior in elementary education. “It would be nice to have a consistent ‘climate of honesty, friendship, cooperation, civility and professionalism,’ but the practicality of becoming a utopian society is not likely, nor should the university aspire to become one.”

Jason Buseman, senior in mechanical engineering, agrees.

“It all seems nice in theory, but it has to go two ways,” he said. “The university can put it out there, but the students have to accept and abide by them.”

Samantha Davis, sophomore in journalism and communication, said the document was just reconfirming what the university already thought.

“They don’t go far enough to actually benefit the university,” she said. “I don’t think it will do anything unless they were made into a policy rather than just a helpful suggestion.”

Jonathan Osterhaus, junior in biology, generally agreed with the principles and said that most people would agree, to a point.

“They are good principles until the university starts trying to enforce them,” Osterhaus said. “Once they’re being enforced, that’s intruding on what you do in your free time.”

He said it’s understandable to implement the principles for ISU employees, but putting them in the course study is going too far and will push people away.

“If the principles are enforced in classrooms, students will have to do the little dance in order to get the better grade,” he said. “Forcing moralistic beliefs onto someone else is like thought policing, and that’s bad.”

Tyler Rathje, sophomore in pre-business, said the document was too lengthy and that most college students don’t have the time to read something that is not required.

“They’re good, but seem to be repetitive and overlap,” he said. “They should also be common knowledge to college students by now. It’s sad that we have to have them in order to remind us how to act.”

Rathje said it will do little to change existing attitudes and behaviors.

“What’s the purpose? It’s one thing to actually write it, but without motivation, no one will act on them,” Rathje said. “And how are you going to motivate through mass e-mails and pamphlets?”

Summary of the principles GSB supports:

We identify that everyone here chose to come here and is encouraged to participate in the university community.

We are all different and are searching for an understanding and collaboration among all people at the university.

We value everyone in the university community, no matter what our similarities or differences are, and are all striving for the same goal.

We affirm the right and the importance of free exchange of ideas and the promotion of open expression of individuality at Iowa State.

We pledge to work together as a community to respond in a timely and appropriate manner to all acts of discrimination.

The “Principles of Community” and the framework for implementation can be viewed here.

Feedback can be given here or e-mailed to [email protected].

– Compiled by Tess Hannapel