Regents pass RA proposal
UW System unanimously supports policy for RAs to hold meetings, activites
Emily Hartwig
Issue date: 3/13/06 Section: Campus News
After months of debate within the UW System with students, citizens, administrators, politicians and lawyers weighing in, the controversy concerning the activities RAs can lead in their residence halls has come to a close.
On Friday, the UW System Board of Regents unanimously voted to support a policy proposed by UW System President Kevin Reilly which guarantees the right of RAs to contribute to, organize and lead meetings and other activities anywhere on campus as long as they do not use their leadership positions to coerce students into participating.
"I think it's a good, sound policy and I'm glad that it's in writing and will apply equally to all System campuses," Rep. Rob Kreibich, R-Eau Claire, said.
This new policy was developed after Reilly organized the RA Working Group to examine the existing rules on all UW campuses, Christopher Semenas, a member of the Board of Regents, said.
He added that, since the Board approved the decision, it will go into effect immediately.
Senior RA Lance Steiger tipped off the dispute last summer when he received a letter from Associate Director of Housing Deborah Newman saying he must discontinue leading Bible studies in his room, according to a Nov. 7 article in The Spectator.
Steiger later contacted FIRE, an organization which deals with individual rights, which tried to convince UW-Eau Claire to suspend the policy through a letter to Interim Chancellor Vicki Lord Larson on Oct. 10, according to the article.
When this did not achieve the results he and FIRE wanted, Steiger filed a lawsuit through the Alliance Defense Fund challenging the policy, according to a Dec. 5 Spectator article.
Kevin Theriot, the ADF attorney on Steiger's case, said the suit would stand unless a permanent school policy was adopted to guarantee RAs the right to freely exercise their beliefs in their places of employment.Steiger could not comment if the lawsuit would have a new status after the Board's decision, because of his legal counsel.
On Friday, the UW System Board of Regents unanimously voted to support a policy proposed by UW System President Kevin Reilly which guarantees the right of RAs to contribute to, organize and lead meetings and other activities anywhere on campus as long as they do not use their leadership positions to coerce students into participating.
"I think it's a good, sound policy and I'm glad that it's in writing and will apply equally to all System campuses," Rep. Rob Kreibich, R-Eau Claire, said.
This new policy was developed after Reilly organized the RA Working Group to examine the existing rules on all UW campuses, Christopher Semenas, a member of the Board of Regents, said.
He added that, since the Board approved the decision, it will go into effect immediately.
Senior RA Lance Steiger tipped off the dispute last summer when he received a letter from Associate Director of Housing Deborah Newman saying he must discontinue leading Bible studies in his room, according to a Nov. 7 article in The Spectator.
Steiger later contacted FIRE, an organization which deals with individual rights, which tried to convince UW-Eau Claire to suspend the policy through a letter to Interim Chancellor Vicki Lord Larson on Oct. 10, according to the article.
When this did not achieve the results he and FIRE wanted, Steiger filed a lawsuit through the Alliance Defense Fund challenging the policy, according to a Dec. 5 Spectator article.
Kevin Theriot, the ADF attorney on Steiger's case, said the suit would stand unless a permanent school policy was adopted to guarantee RAs the right to freely exercise their beliefs in their places of employment.Steiger could not comment if the lawsuit would have a new status after the Board's decision, because of his legal counsel.
