Changes to Wisconsin Administration Code Chapter 17 and 18 would give UW-Platteville the power to punish students for off-campus offenses if deemed severe enough. The Chancellor’s powers on campus are also being reconsidered in the proposed changes.

Postponed from the March 3 Student Senate meeting, the goal of the organization is to form a statement on what they feel is in the best interest of the student body regarding the changes, Rich Egley, administrative liaison to Student Senate, said.

The proposed changes, especially outlined in Chapter 17, will deal with student misconduct off-campus, Kenny Brotheridge, Student Senate Vice President, said. There is a possibility of students being charged twice, depending on the severity of the issue.

“One of the overwhelming questions I hear from students is underage or off-campus drinking violations,” Frank Moullet, Student Senate President, said.

Moullet has dealt with issues concerning the proposed changes in Chapters 17 and 18 before, but this offense is not likely to be one that will generate this strong of review. Punishment depends on the individual situation and seriousness and amount of disruption, Egley said.

A preliminary hearing with the Chancellor was previously required under Chapter 17. The changes strike that necessity to make the use more practical, Egley said. A hearing is still needed within 21 days of an incident, but it won’t need to be by the Chancellor.

In his time at UW-Platteville, Egley has only expelled one student from school, due to academic misconduct.

“The most serious sanctions aren’t implemented in most cases at UW-Platteville,” Egley said.

UW-P is not a campus that will regularly implement the policy outlined in the revisions, Egley said. Cases are often going to be seen at campuses like Milwaukee, who have much stronger issues to deal with than within this community.

Senate will be discussing and voting on the revisions during their March 10 meeting. The 63-page document outlining all the revisions can be found online for students to look at, Brotheridge said.

“You may want to take some time to read through this,” Moullet said.

The senators want to hear the opinions of the student body before making any decisions. If there are concerns or questions, it is encouraged that students either attend the meeting, or discuss with a senator prior to the meeting.

Currently, the process of incorporating these revisions is on step 14 of 20. The proposed changes must be passed by all UW-System schools before proceeding so the state court system to be voted on, Brotheridge said. It is highly encouraged for students to look over and familiarize themselves with the changes.

To read the full document, those interested can go to wisconsin.edu/admincode/.