Colleges have standards, and when their reputation is put at risk because of a student’s actions on social media, it is the institution’s responsibility to step in.
According to an Atlanta Journal-Constitution article, Georgia State University did just that when soccer player Natalia Martinez posted racist slurs on her Instagram account. Martinez received severe backlash from her classmates and GSU school officials because of the post and, according to the Daily News, was suspended from the GSU soccer team.
Before Martinez, a different incident occurred involving former University of Alabama student Harley Barber. The Washington Post said that Barber was expelled for posting a series of racist videos on her secondary Instagram account on MLK day. Her videos were “highly offensive and deeply hurtful,” university President Stuart R. Bell said in a message.
Attending college is an earned privilege, and students should not use their personal social media account as a platform to promote disgustingly racist statements. With privilege comes a responsibility to represent your college in a way that is consistent with the university’s values.
For example, Kennesaw State’s code of conduct outlines expectations for respect among students. It states that students must always show positive regard for each other and for their community, and it lists specific behaviors that students are not allowed to display.
These behaviors include discrimination, harassment, harmful and/or threatening behaviors and bullying, among many others. Racist posts on social media easily qualify as breaking several of these rules, and the university has all authority to decide whether or not to discipline the student.
The code of conduct further talks about possible sanctions it can impose on students if they break the rules. Such sanctions include suspension, getting kicked out of on-campus housing, expulsion and other penalties. No matter what a student’s views are, the university has authority to impose these sanctions as GSU and Alabama did.
As long as the student is enrolled under these, or similar, rules and are potentially in the public eye on social media, colleges should suspend or expel students for posting hateful messages. For the protection of students and the college’s reputation, it is the administration’s responsibility to hold its students accountable.
