September 1, 2008

Student Affairs Leader - September 1, 2008 - Full Issue PDF
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Personal Liability of College Administrators: Should I Be Worried?
By Barbara A. Lee
When students are injured or killed on campus, they or their families may believe that individual administrators did not do enough to protect their son or daughter or to keep them safe. Although administrators are very rarely found personally liable for legal wrongs to students or their families, these lawsuits appear to be increasing.

Don't Set Practice by 'Lightning Strike' Decision
Student affairs educators should not let a recent ruling about a negligence lawsuit against former Texas A&M administrators go too far in informing their practice, says a higher education law expert.

Revisiting FERPA: Balancing Privacy and Safety
By Dennis Black
One of the policy outcomes of the tragic 2007 shootings at Virginia Tech was a re-examination of student record privacy. The state commission that looked into the shootings questioned why more people were not aware of the shooter’s background and the degree to which his family had been in contact with the school over his difficulties.

Critique Misses Students Affairs’ Educational Role
A recent National Association of Scholars (NAS) critique of student affairs mostly misses the mark. However, it also contains a couple of points worth considering.