Students, Venture Out And Give Your Opinion On UNC's Honor Code

Looking for something to do tonight?

How about this for entertainment:

The room is 109 Fetzer Gym. The time is 7 p.m. Chancellor James "The Rock" Moeser and Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Sue "Chyna" Kitchen join forces as referees for Deathmatch 2001: The Students vs. The Honor Code.

The melee begins when mutinous computer science students, enraged Honor Court members, Daily Tar Heel columnists and professors exchange blows with rolled-up copies of the 37-page Instrument for Student Judicial Governance.

OK, OK, so that probably won't happen.

But if you believe some people, we should expect such hostility when the chancellor and key administrators hold tonight's open forum on "honor." We're hoping for a slightly calmer discussion, because there are some serious questions we need to answer.

Do we need an Honor Code at all?

Is honor still important at UNC?

If so, should students enforce the Honor Code?

Should we punish students for crimes committed abroad? Should students be tried for state or federal crimes?

Does our system represent the student body well? Is the honor system broken? And if so, how should we fix it?

There are probably as many myths circulating about the honor system as there are complaints about it.

This forum is a chance for students and administrators alike to understand the Honor system and initiate reform, if that's what we need.

So with all that in mind, please join us at 7 p.m. today in 109 Fetzer for an open forum about honor. The chancellor and other University high-ups will help moderate the event, and they'll be listening to what we -- the students -- have to say about honor.

Let's give them what they came for.

Rudy Kleysteuber

Junior

Biology and Philosophy

Rachel Hockfield

Sophomore

Political Science