A footnote that includes gender identity could soon be added to MSU's anti-discrimination policy but not without jumping over a few more hurdles.
The proposal to amend the anti-discrimination policy was approved Tuesday by the Academic Council, the last step in the Academic Governance system before it heads to MSU's Board of Trustees.
"It was a very thoughtful discussion about a very complex issue," MSU Provost Lou Anna Simon said.
The Board of Trustees, which is the highest governing body of the university, ultimately decides the fate of the footnote. The action has been placed in an advisory mode to MSU President M. Peter McPherson, which means there are a few more issues he needs to review before the proposal can move either forward to the trustees or backward to Academic Governance.
Academic Council is composed of administrators, faculty and students who make recommendations to the board.
MSU spokesman Terry Denbow said there is no time constraint on how long the administration can look at the policy but said McPherson intends to review it immediately.
McPherson was unavailable for comment Tuesday.
"It's going to require a lot more studying of issues before the administration implementation of it," Denbow said.
The footnote was brought to Academic Governance more than a year ago when ASMSU, MSU's undergraduate student government, decided it was necessary that the term "gender identity" be added in the list of categories to protect against discrimination and harassment.
Computer science senior Josh Boehme, a member of a special gender identity committee, said the trustees will probably look at the issue soon.
"I don't think the Board of Trustees can just ignore a recommendation from Academic Council, it would be kind of like a slap in the face," said Boehme, also a member of the Alliance of Lesbian-Bi-Gay-Transgendered and Straight Ally Students.
Several committees received the proposal and the special committee - a committee that would meet about 30 times for more than two hours each time - was formed to create a formal report proposing the amendment to the policy.
"We struggled with the use of the term," said toxicology Associate Professor Karen Chou, chairwoman of the special committee that created the footnote, adding there were two major issues the committee was concerned with, including understanding the "scope of who was protected" and that many people might not understand the complicated issues surrounding gender identity and the footnote.
"We are also aware that there is a broader community with different perceptions, like parents or legislators," Chou said. "But that didn't stop the committee from presenting it to the council."
The proposal has been shifted through Academic Governance committees since fall, and it finally reached the full Academic Council for vote Tuesday.
The decision to pass the proposal was supported by the majority, with two voting against it.
"This is part of the slippery slope toward political correctness," said Samuel Howerton, a member of the Council of Graduate Students and a chemistry graduate student, who opposed the measure.
During the debate about the footnote, more questions were raised than necessary and people seemed unsure about the wording, Howerton said.
"If these people can't understand it, what hope do I or any other student have of understanding this cryptic language?" Howerton said.
Matt Weingarden, ASMSU Student Assembly chairperson and a member of the special committee, said he was ecstatic the amendment passed through Academic Council.
"This is a step in the direction of promoting a truly inclusive environment at MSU," he said.
