Appalachian State is one of the constituent institutions of the University of North Carolina System. An almost comical series of events there has led to lawsuits and actions by the university that appear to trample upon not only its own rules, but the First Amendment.
In today’s Martin Center article, Harrington Shaw covers the case.
A student named Hunter Clark successfully sought the impeachment of the president and vice-president of the Student Government Association, charging them with abuse of funds and threatening other members. Hardly a big deal, but the ousted president then brought suit against Clark for defamation. Still just a tempest in a teapot — but then the university administration got into the act.
Shaw explains: “Despite the frivolous nature of the threatened lawsuit, university officials seemed to panic. A number of Clark’s fellow senators received a letter from Assistant Vice Chancellor Jeff Cathey stating that he and Vice Chancellor J.J. Brown had decided that all future SGA elections should be suspended ‘until the circumstances associated with the Nathan Miller letter are resolved.’ This was a clear violation of UNC-System policy, which ‘insulate[s] student government elections at UNC constituent institutions from influence of University employees, administrators, and trustees.’ The undergraduate senate duly passed a resolution reminding the institution of the proper role of student government.”
The administration then pressured Clark into resigning and in effect suspended the Student Government Association, actions that, as Shaw writes, have further legal ramifications. Read the whole article for the full story.