By Erin Miller

Editor in chief

The point of the recent town hall meetings was to help students not involved with Student Senate interact with Calvin administrators.

But, when only a handful of students not on senate showed up - fewer than 10 at both meetings - some student senators came to the conclusion that students missed the point.

``I really wish more students would have come,'' Student Senate President Berniz Constanza said. ``This was the chance to tell us what they want. It's frustrating.''

The students who did attend either of the town hall meetings Monday afternoon and evening in the Fish House heard informal explanations on a variety of topics from Academic Dean David Diephouse, Dean for Student Development Bob Crow and Vice President for Student Life Shirley Hoogstra.

The meetings were called by Student Senate for two reasons: one, to get the administration to directly and informally address student concerns and, two, to give students the opportunity to ask questions of the administrators.

Diephouse, speaking first, explained the process of hiring professors at Calvin. Diephouse was asked to address this topic after questions had been raised among students about what policies would allow the hiring of professors who were later arrested for drug possession and distribution.

Variations on three main questions - why there seem to be different standards for faculty and students, why the two faculty members arrested last year and this summer received different treatment, and how faculty members with drug problems (or the potential to have drug problems) were hired in the first place - are often directed to Diephouse, sometimes by students, but more often by their parents.

``The most important thing is that faculty have a code of conduct similar to students,'' he said. ``The underlying philosophy [of the student handbook] also applies to faculty, to adhere to standards of behavior.''

Specifically, he added, possession and use of any drugs - or abuse of alcohol - is a violation of community expectations. In the case of any faculty member who violates the conduct code, disciplinary actions are considered based on the nature of the offense, as well as the efforts taken by the person in violation to rectify the situation. When Fred DeJong was first arrested last semester, he went on adminstrative leave. Diephouse said that this allowed DeJong to ``focus on his own issues and for us to be sure there were no students involved.

``As with students, the mere fact of a violation does not bar [remaining at Calvin],'' he added.

Former professor Robert Butler resigned from Calvin after his arrest, thereby removing need for any disciplinary actions by the school.

Diephouse then went on the discuss the hiring policy at Calvin. The official faculty requirements, such as church and denominational membership were not discussed, but rather the less known aspects involved in the application process itself. Compared to other private and state schools as well, the process at Calvin is lengthier and involves more of the faculty and staff.

``Typically, it is more or less the absolute power of an administration or entirely the responsibility and power of an administration,'' he said. ``Calvin is unusual in that hiring ... [involves the whole] community.''

First, the department looking to hire a new professor will advertise, nationally and internationally, for candidates, review the candidates and invite the two to four best candidates to come to Calvin, teach a few classes and interview for the job. Next, a committee, chaired by President Gaylen Byker, interviews the top candidates more closely, to see how their personal beliefs and worldview lines up with those of the college. That committee makes a recommendation to the Board of Trustees, who makes the final decision.

For Calvin, Diephouse said, more qualifications are considered than academic background.

``Teaching is job one here,'' he said. ``We want to be as sure as we can in advance ... that a person is going to be effective. Ideally, we [find] candidates who have prior teaching experience.''

This process, as involved as it may seem to candidates and to Calvin faculty who recommend hiring a candidate, cannot screen out every bad professor or professor who may, at a later date, have the same problems as DeJong and Butler.

``No hiring procedure, no matter how good, is fool-proof,'' Diephouse said.

Following Diephouse, Hoogstra provided students with a copy of the latest Board of Trustees report, a document composed of letters from several college vice presidents detailing projects occurring, new faculty and staff hired and upcoming changes at the college.

Finally, Crow discussed the smoking policy at Calvin, and the history of the policy as it stands now. As many students already know, the number of smoking areas on-campus was reduced to 15 in September. Crow said that policy will remain in place until at least the spring semester in 2003, in order to allow enough time to fully evaluate it.

Although the Student Development Office has no plans to conduct any official review of the policy before 2003, Student Senate will take surveys each semester until then. In doing so, student opinion will be guaged throughout the entire process, instead of at the beginning, when it has not been in place long enough to be judged.

Crow asked students attending the meeting to remind their friends who smoke to restrict themselves to the new areas.

``I would love it if you passed the word to encourage people to comply with this policy,'' he said. ``It's the community's responsibilityto take care of this.''

One student asked Crow the if there were any benefits to even allowing smoking on-campus.

``We're trying to acknowledge that for some people, [smoking] is a habit they have,'' he said. ``We're not trying to encourage it.''

Crow added that he and other Calvin administrators do not seen smoking as a moral issue and, because smoking has not been condemned as such within Christian Reformed tradition.

``Calvin historically has attracted more students who smoke than other colleges,'' he said, adding that he knows of students who chose to attend Calvin because it is a Christian college that allows smoking. ``There's a cultural background that helps to continue to feed this. To terminate it immediately, a lot of people would be upset. I feel very comforatable, personally, saying, `Let's co-exist.'''

Few students had specific questions for any of the administrators at the meeting, and after a few minutes of discussion, the panel asked the students a few questions about Calvin students and alcohol consumption (see related article for more information).

Looking back at the meetings, Constanza said she thought they went well in spite of the lack of student participation, and added that town hall meetings are planned for February, following the next Board of Trustees meeting.

``Hopefully these meetings will motivate other students to come to the Febuary one,'' she said. ``We're going to take a different approach to advertising it.''