GLSA PUSHES POLICY CHANGE

Students at Southeast Missouri State University want the university's non-discrimination policy amended to include rights for homosexual students.

The policy prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age or handicap. Students want to add sexual orientation to the list.

"The university prides itself on cultural diversity, and to me this is just the next step," said Joe Dunlap, president of the Gay and Lesbian Student Association (GLSA) at Southeast.

Dunlap, along with members of the Student Government Presidential Council, met with University President Kala Stroup this week and asked her to support the policy addition.

The Presidential Council is made up of the presidents of the Student Activities Council, GLSA, Association of Black Collegians, Residence Hall Association, Council for International Students, several Greek governing boards and the editor of the campus newspaper. Is it headed by Student Government President K.C. Martin.

Whether or not the policy will be changed is still in question. Art Wallhausen, assistant to the president at Southeast, said any policy change will face approval by several university committees and ultimately the Board of Regents.

Stroup, who according to her secretary was out of town Wednesday and could not be reached for comment, told the students to first take the proposed policy change to the university's affirmative action committee.

But Dunlap said a GLSA member who sits on the affirmative action committee has pushed unsuccessfully for the policy change for two years.

Wallhausen said the university's non-discrimination policy was developed in the early 1980s.

"The statements (students) are talking about have been developed over a period of years, some of them with the approval of the Office of Civil Rights," Wallhausen said. "Changing them may seem like a simple matter, but there are processes to follow."

Wallhausen said he had not discussed the policy change with Stroup.

Other Missouri universities have amended their non-discrimination policies to include sexual orientation, including the University of Missouri campuses at St. Louis and Columbia.

Dunlap said a policy change would effect the "campus climate" by sending a message to students that discrimination against homosexuals will not be tolerated. When questioned, Dunlap said he knew of no specific cases of discrimination against homosexual students, but added that "racism and harassment does exist" on campus.

"If the university doesn't take a stand on the policy change and let the students know they are behind it, then what does that say to the students?" Dunlap said.

He called the policy change a "safeguard" against discrimination of homosexuals.

He added that the support of other student organizations for the policy change is vital to its ultimate acceptance. But he isn't optimistic that the change will come about soon.

"I'm not going to get extremely hopeful," he said.