The Student Affairs staff is considering a new regulation which will establish academic and disciplinary standards for student leaders in some student organizations.

The regulation would split all student organizations into two groups, recognized and registered, which would determine the minimum standards for leaders in organizations. It would also set standards for organization advisers.

For registered student organizations, like club sports, not much would change. Besides the required adherence to student organization registration requirements, which were already in place, the only new rule is the designation of a faculty or staff member to act as an adviser. According to Mike Giancola, director of the Center for Student Leadership, Ethics and Public Service, it’s a practice most student groups already follow.

But the biggest changes may actually affect a minority of students — around 200, according to Giancola.

This is an approximation of the number of student leaders in “recognized” student organizations, which according to a draft of the regulation revised on June 16, “operate under the auspices of a sponsoring University unit.”

This means two things, according to Giancola. Not only must the group receive resources from the University but must also exercise representative student leadership. This includes groups like Student Government, the Union Activities Board and college councils.

All four of these new requirements, according to the document, constitute the definition of “in good standing.”

+ Full-time enrollment

+ Minimum 2.5 semester and cumulative GPA

+ Satisfactory progress towards degree

+ No active disciplinary sanctions

Although student groups do have the ability to raise these standards, Giancola said he was surprised that this wasn’t implemented sooner.

“Under this policy, it’s the bare minimum,” Giancola said. “Best practice tells we should be doing this already.”

One of the most controversial pieces of this proposal, Giancola said, was the GPA standard. He said members of the group determined the number after examining the GPA most colleges and departments require to graduate.

That number came up most often as 2.5. Giancola said, however, that he’s not in favor of setting the GPA so high it excludes students.

“I don’t advocate a 3.0 GPA — I don’t think GPA is the only measure of success,” Giancola said. “We all value student’s out-of-class experience, but not at a detriment to the in-class.”

He said that although student leadership is important, some students seem to lose sight of academics. This proposal, he said, is designed to help students by “setting them up for success.”

“Some of the most significant learning occurs outside of the classroom,” Giancola said. “But you can’t major in student leadership on this campus.”

It was this factor, he said, that first prompted the initial discussions of the regulation more than a year ago.

“We started to see this trend where students would participate in student organizations and not have their academic goals in the foreground,” Giancola said.

But falling below this GPA requirement doesn’t necessarily mean students will be kicked out of their clubs. The regulation requires students to meet with advisers to form a “recovery strategy,” which may include “probationary status or suspension from the organization for a minimum of one semester.”

According to Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Evelyn Reiman, the recovery strategy gives advisers the opportunity to work one on one with students.

And with about 30,000 potential student leaders on campus, this has its own benefits

“All students have a different set of variables,” Reiman said. “It’s not a one size fits all kind of thing.”

Reiman said she hopes the notion of a recovery strategy will improve student-adviser relationships and pointed out that one part of the proposal is the first comprehensive attempt to let students know what to expect from their advisers.”

“It’s not designed to knock the legs out from under students or cast them out,” she said. “I have seen wonderful things happen in this partnership.”

But despite the progress Student Affairs staff has made, there remain several uncertainties surrounding the proposed regulation.

Giancola said the possibility of a grandfather clause, which would exclude current students from the regulations requirements, is still being considered.

As the president of the student senate, Zach Adams leads a group of almost 50 students who may be affected by the proposal. He said a grandfather clause would make a lot of sense.

“If they do go through with it, a grandfather clause would be fair,” he said.

Issues of enforcement are also a bit hazy. Giancola said the group had not determined how often it would check to make sure students meet these standards and no specifics are laid out in the text for the development of the recovery strategies.

Giancola, however, said it’s important not to have a policy that “tells you when to turn left and when to turn right.”

In the meantime, Adams said he wouldn’t support the proposal unless it had a “system to address extenuating circumstances.” He said he also disagreed with the way groups were clumped together.

“In most cases it will help students stay focused on what they’re here for, academics,” Adams said. “But I don’t want to restrict all students in cases where they could make a significant impact.”

Reiman said her goal is for the regulation to be enacted by the fall. The proposal needs Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Tom Stafford’s approval before it becomes official.