Dear Colleagues,

As you may have heard, there is a post on social media claiming that one of our nursing students was suspended for “criticizing Israeli violence against Palestinians.” The message is encouraging a letter writing campaign and various UM email accounts have received several hundred emails as a result. We do not intend to respond to these emails given the volume and that the majority are from outside the university community.

I am providing the following messages that you can use to respond to potential concerns raised by students:

The University of Manitoba does not suspend students for exercising freedom of speech. UM follows a robust and rigorous process to review matters of academic and non-academic misconduct<%5bhttps:/umanitoba.ca/governance/sites/governance/files/2021-09/Student%20Non-Academic%20Misconduct%20and%20Concerning%20Behaviour%20Procedure%20-%202021_09_01.pdf%5d> and adheres to several policies and procedures including our Respectful Workplace and Learning Environment Policy https://umanitoba.ca/governance/sites/governance/files/2021-06/Respectful%20Work%20and%20Learning%20Environment%20RWLE%20Policy%20-%202020_09_29.pdf and Violent and Threatening Behaviour Policy<%5bhttps:/umanitoba.ca/sites/default/files/2021-01/violent_or_threatening_behaviour_policy_-_2020_03_09.pdf%5d>.

Decisions are made only after careful consideration of the circumstances and evidence. Any student facing an allegation of misconduct is offered the support from our Student Advocacy Officehttps://umanitoba.ca/student-supports/academic-supports/student-advocacy to navigate the process, and always has an opportunity to appeal. The suspension of a student found in breach of our misconduct policies for multiple terms, or a full academic year is a common penalty for more serious violations.

Out of respect for privacy, UM cannot provide details specific to disciplinary cases. Every student who is suspended receives a detailed letter outlining the reasons for their suspension. Please contact me if you have questions. If you receive any media inquiries, please direct them to:

Eleanor Coopsammy (she/her) Director, Media Relations & Issues Management Office of the Vice-President (External) University of Manitoba Eleanor.Coopsammy@umanitoba.camailto:Eleanor.Coopsammy@umanitoba.ca Sincerely, Netha

Dr. Netha Dyck, RN, EdD, CHE, I-FCNEI, I-FCAN Dean, College of Nursing, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences Helen Glass Centre for Nursing 89 Curry Place Winnipeg, Manitoba R3T 2N2 <image001.png> Tel: 204-474-9201 Cell: 204-891-1883 Email: netha.dyck@umanitoba.camailto:netha.dyck@umanitoba.ca Website: www.umanitoba.ca/nursinghttp://www.umanitoba.ca/nursing