A RESOLUTION
IN SUPPORT OF THE STUDENT BILL OF RIGHTS

A.R. 1

WHEREAS students at The University of Texas at Austin (UT) lack a central resource enumerating their rights as members of the community of The University of Texas at Austin; and

WHEREAS graduate students and international students coming from many parts of the globe and many different institutions are often unfamiliar with their rights as members of the UT community; and

WHEREAS a central resource enumerating the rights of graduate students will greatly increase student awareness of their rights and will encourage students to insist that their rights be respected by other members of the University community; and

WHEREAS a Student Bill of Rights (SBOR) will serve as the vehicle through which these objectives can be achieved; and

WHEREAS a joint committee, consisting of representatives from the Senate of College Councils, Student Government, and Graduate Student Assembly, drafted a Student Bill of Rights; and

WHEREAS the Student Bill of Rights expounds upon the rules, regulations, and privileges already afforded to students at The University of Texas at Austin. No unique right stated in the document was created; instead the intent of the original draft stands as a declaration of existing rights in hopes of preserving the rights afforded to the students in the status quo; and

WHEREAS the Student Bill of Rights is in accordance with the 2000 American Association of University Professors (AAUP) Statement on Graduate Students.

WHEREAS it is the duty of the Graduate Student Assembly (GSA) of The University of Texas at Austin to continuously monitor the administration of this document to ensure its relevancy to graduate students.

BE IT RESOLVED that the Graduate Student Assembly of The University of Texas at Austin shall accept the Student Bill of Rights, in its approved form by graduate students, as the central guiding resource for graduate student rights at The University of Texas at Austin;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Graduate Student Assembly of The University of Texas at Austin shall accept that the Student Bill of Rights is a living document that upon approval by the administration, Board of Regents, and students by referendum, will become an official document of The University of Texas at Austin.

Authored By: Erik D. Malmberg (Electronic Resources Coordinator)

Sponsored By: Ginger Gossman (Public Relations Coordinator), Erik D. Malmberg (Electronic Resources Coordinator)

Approved: October 6, 2003