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Colleges Are Assuring Prospective Students That They Won't Be Rejected For Protesting Guns
After the shooting in Parkland, Florida, students are planning protests across the country. Colleges tell them that getting suspended for protesting won't change getting in to school.
Students across the country are speaking out about gun reform following the shooting in Parkland, Florida. On March 14, 2018, the National School Walkout is calling for students, teachers, parents and allies to take part in a protest for 17 minutes—one minute for every victim — at 10 a.m. Many colleges and universities are publicly speaking out that protesting with the #NeverAgain movementwill not affect the admission chances of high school students, BuzzFeed News reports.
Ivy League college Yale is one of many institutions of higher learning that took to Twitter to assure students that it will not rescind any admissions decisions for those that decide to protest.
“Here at @Yale, we are proud to support all students for participating in peaceful walkouts for gun control or other causes, and we will not rescind admissions decisions for students who do so regardless of any school’s disciplinary policy,” the school Tweeted.
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) echoed the sentiment on Twitter.
“Students disciplined by your high schools for joining in responsible anti-gun protests—you won’t get your admission rescinded,” the tech giant Tweeted.
“Speak your truth,” added Dartmouth.
George Washington University added that there won’t be consequences to admissions, even if a student is disciplined or suspended from their high school due to the protesting.
“GW supports a student's right to advocate. If you are disciplined or suspended by your school as a consequence of peacefully & lawfully exercising your right to protest, such measures will have no effect upon your admissions decision,” the school Tweeted.
Other schools mentioned as supporting protests include Amherst College, Brown University, the University of Connecticut, Northeastern University, UCLA and Brandeis. BuzzFeedNews has a comprehensive list of universities that support the #NeverAgain movement here. There are currently over 100 schools on the list.
This comes on the heels of news that some high school districts will punish protesters. Needville ISD Superintendent Curtis Rhodes of Texas, for instance, sent a letter to families that schools can suspend any student who disrupts schools or walks out to protest the gun laws.
"Life is all about choices and every choice has a consequence whether it be positive or negative. We will discipline no matter if it is one, fifty, or five hundred students involved," Rhodes said, per the Houston Chronicle. "All will be suspended for 3 days and parent notes will not alleviate the discipline."
Following the shooting that took 17 lives at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, student victims have been outspoken critics of gun laws and legislation.
[Photo: Getty Images]
