Xref: utzoo alt.comp.acad-freedom.talk:55 comp.admin.policy:265
Newsgroups: alt.comp.acad-freedom.talk,comp.admin.policy
Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!n8emr!bluemoon!sbrack
From: sbrack@bluemoon.uucp (Steven S. Brack)
Subject: Re: Ohio State University CIS Policies
Message-ID: <Z9c2316w164w@bluemoon.uucp>
Sender: bbs@bluemoon.uucp (BBS Login)
Organization: Blue Moon BBS ((614) 868-998[0][2][4])
References: <1991Jun4.160947.7193@eng.umd.edu>
Date: Tue, 04 Jun 91 17:22:58 EDT

russotto@eng.umd.edu (Matthew T. Russotto) writes:

> In article <1991Jun3.232500.24850@ms.uky.edu> morgan@ms.uky.edu (Wes Morgan) 
> >In article <1991Jun3.173550.13928@eff.org> kadie@eff.org (Carl Kadie) writes
> >>
> >>The fatal flaw in the policies is the lack of any notion of due
> >>process. It looks like a student or a faculty member could be
> >>suspending or expelled from the computer system at the whim of sys
> >>admin without recourse to a formal hearing.
> >>
> >
> >Why, oh why, is *everything* turning into a "formal" or "due
> >process" situation?  We've never had any problem with a student
> >that wasn't solved with a face-to-face conversation.  I've 
> >stopped chain letters, obscene files, and email flood wars with
> >a simple "please drop by to see me" message.  Sure, users have
> >been locked out here; this only occurred when the student ignored
> >several requests to come in for a meeting.  I haven't had to lock
> >anyone out yet; those few occurances were several years ago.
> >
> >I realize that "due process" is a student right; however, aren't
> >we getting just a bit too stringent in its application?  Heck, 
> >I guess I'll have to schedule a hearing to kill user processes
> >that are using > 75% of the available system, since it's their
> >final project and I'm infringing their rights.
> >
> >Let's step back, take a deep breath, and look at this from a
> >new perspective, shall we?
> 
        When I was locked out of my class account early this quarter,
        I made 15 phone calls to 10 different people, not counting
        being transferred all over campus.

        Apparently the policy of our system administration is to keep
        students from solving problems on the local admin level.  My
        account priveleges were restored after I met with the chair
        of the department that owned, but did not manage, the system in
        question.  My telephony took me all the way from my professor
        to the local system manager to the director of Academic Computing
        Services, then to the Dean of the Engineering College.  I finally
        called our University Ombudsperson, who helped me determine who
        I should have been talking to, as none of the people I talked to
        directed me to the right place.



===========================================================================
Steven S. Brack     sbrack@bluemoon.uucp        The Ohio State University
sbrack%bluemoon@nstar.rn.com                        sbrack@isis.cs.du.edu
===========================================================================