This past summer, media outlets both praised and criticized the Notre Dame Athletic Department for a perceived change in disciplinary policy. The attention resulted from Michael Floyd’s arrest and subsequent disciplinary proceedings.
Last spring, Head Football Coach Brian Kelly suspended Floyd from football-related activities following Floyd’s drunk driving arrest. Because Floyd had violated the university’s alcohol policy twice before, many assumed he had jeopardized his future football career with the Irish.
The Office of Residence Life, however, chose not to suspend Floyd from the university, and Kelly reinstated Floyd to the team in time to start the season. Such a decision indicates a departure from previous disciplinary policy.
The university suspended running back Rashon Powers-Neal for the remainder of the football season after his DUI arrest in October 2005. Tight end Will Yeatman received a suspension for the season following his arrest for minor consumption of alcohol in September 2008.
Rick Morrissey at the Chicago Sun-Times wrote, “For better or worse, Notre Dame has decided to play college football…In at least one case, it means the Irish are being more lenient about disciplinary matters.”
The athletic department downplays such allegations as hearsay. Jill Bodensteiner, associate athletic director, said, “All policies in DU LAC apply to student-athletes exactly as they apply to all Notre Dame students.”
A member of the Notre Dame football team underscores the lack of a double standard: “I have not seen anything that makes me think that the issues faced by athletes are any different than those facing the student body as a whole.”
The university’s “Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol or Drugs” policy does not require automatic suspension for first offenders. Where repeat offenders are concerned, DU LAC specifies that “the Office of Residence Life will separate the student from the University for at least one academic semester.”
Director of the Office of Residence Life Kathleen O’Leary said that there have been changes to some student life policies.
According to O’Leary, “Revisions included clarification on when the University will address off-campus misconduct and separation of the sanction of loss of student extracurricular privileges from the sanction of a student being placed on Disciplinary Probation.”
O’Leary also explained that “In compliance with federal regulations, our office does not comment regarding individual students.” According to the student handbook, circumstances in a particular case can have bearing on the decisions of the Office of Residence Life.
Considering the potential for “circumstances” to affect disciplinary proceedings, the reasoning behind the Floyd decision remains known to only a select few at Notre Dame.
O’Leary stated that the changes to DU LAC “were the result of over two years’ worth of committee work which included benchmarking with other institutions and gathering feedback from students, faculty, staff, and alumni.”
Other revisions to DU LAC, in addition to those applicable to the Floyd case when the university will address off-campus misconduct, including a section on “Disciplinary Records,” and revising the sexual assault and misconduct policy.
The evolution of the Office of Residence Life is not over. O’Leary said that “during the current academic year, the Office of Residence Life is conducting a comprehensive review of our student disciplinary procedures as outlined in DU LAC to ensure that our process is educational and encourages students to live responsibly within our community.”
Throughout all of the changes, a high-quality student life continues to be the goal of discipline at Notre Dame. “The University has set high expectations for student conduct in our student life policies, and all students are expected to live up to these expectations,” said O’Leary.
Patrick McFarlane is a sophomore aerospace engineering major living in Stanford Hall. Contact him at pmcfarla@nd.edu.
