New Student Orientation Has Started at U. Montana; Still No New Policies Posted

With first-year law students on their third day of class, and undergrads on their second day of orientation, it’s long past time for the University of Montana (UMT) to reveal its newly revised policies concerning sexual misconduct. Surprisingly, UMT’s old policy on sexual harassment remains on its website, leaving students and faculty unsure about what exactly is prohibited this school year and what must be reported. As detailed in the resolution agreement, revised policies must be approved by the Departments of Education and Justice before being fully implemented. Perhaps the revised policies are stuck at this stage of the process (although one assumes that the Departments have been made aware of UMT’s academic calendar). But particularly when a university is so publicly between policies, the failure to post at least interim measures before students arrive on campus leaves students unsure as to the consequences of their speech. Check back to The Torch for continuing developments. Want to know more about the ED/DOJ “blueprint”?  Check out FIRE's Frequently Asked Questions here!