CSU Systemwide Time, Place and Manner policy

The new system wide Time, Place and Manner policy has raised many concerns from both students and faculty regarding the effects it will have on campus free speech.

“Historically we had our own campus TPM, which was more responsive to our context and histories,” said Enoch Hale, Director for Teaching and Learning at Cal Poly Humboldt.

Old Time, Place and Manner
This previous policy is just over 6,300 words and did not include regulations about occupations, encampments, unauthorized structures, concealing identity with face masks and vandalism. The old TPM focused on expression of free speech, commercial activity and use of university property.

New Systemwide Time, Place and Manner Policy
The new system wide policy is close to 8,000 words and it has all previous policies regarding encampments, vandalism, masks, barriers, occupation and restrictions into one “centralized” website. Students are directed to read the policy when they have questions or to speak to the Dean of Students Office first when trying to reserve the University Quad for free speech events.

Two campus groups related to free speech have been made as part of Cal Poly Humboldt’s implementation of the new TPM policy. The Community Engagement Team (CET) and The Free Speech Response Team (FSRT) are both composed of faculty and staff. Their function is to observe the students during their gatherings and de-escalate “emotionally charged” situations such as protests. The FSRT is responsible for implementing and reinforcing the TPM.

Vice President of Enrollment and Student Success, Dr. Chrissy Holliday is one of the many administrators working to address the CSU requirements related to the TPM policy at Cal Poly Humboldt.

“CET will be trained in de-escalation techniques, as well as empathy and engagement skills to navigate emotionally-charged moments.They will be present during free speech activity on campus to help determine when and if education around TPM is needed,” Holliday said.

CET members will attend future protests, rallies and other activities being held on campus while also serving as a consultative group to the Free Speech Response Team. Members of CET will share their insight of campus concerns they have about the implementation of the new TPM policy.

“The CET was developed as a direct result of feedback from faculty, staff and students after the protests last spring, and is one of the major changes we are making to how we respond to free speech activities on our campus,” Holliday said.

FSRT is made up of approximately 15 people and the CET has 24 people. Hale and Holliday are both members of the Free Speech Response Team. Hale also serves on the CET.

In addition to the CET, a broader group unofficially named “The Free Speech Committee” began in the summer as requested by CSU Chancellor Mildred Garcia.

Faculty and student concerns

Andrea Delgado is a professor in the English Department at CPH and is a member of the CET. Delgado is concerned about the language in the new TPM policy regarding academic freedom in classrooms and what professors can lecture on.
“I will say, however, that what is very concerning to me is the line where faculty are told ‘Instructional faculty are entitled to academic freedom in the classroom in discussing their subject, but they should be careful not to introduce into their teaching controversial matter which has no relation to their subject.’ Who decides which topics are unrelated? Who decides what is controversial? This is highly problematic,” Delgado said in an email.

Rick Toledo is a student activist and registered legal observer with the National Lawyers Guild. He is concerned that this system wide policy might force students to choose between silencing their voice and openly breaking the policy.

Toledo recalls that when he was in his disciplinary hearing back in March he was told that the university was now enforcing TPM when they hadn’t before because of the Palestine situation. Toledo said that the admin was afraid of being sued by Zionists for letting Pro-Palestine students protest on campus. However, this statement has not been confirmed or denied by the administration.

“Any action that we can take that truly disrupts power and that gives us some kind of leverage against them has been stripped away by this,” Toledo said. “So now we have to get extremely creative to find ways that we can navigate it or we are forced to openly break the policy and face severe oppression.”

Mary Mangubat, another student activist that was previously disciplined by the old TPM, finds the extension of amplified voice to be interesting. She believes that applications for event reservations won’t automatically be denied now due to the use of amplified voices, making it easier for students. However, Mangubat wonders how administration will determine what events are disruptive, to her it’s too subjective.

“As students, your instant reaction is to feel cautious around faculty and staff but then at the same time there’s this nuance that faculty and staff who are volunteering to be in these roles because they do want to protect students,” Mangubat said.

Magubat feels that administrators are unsure of how they are really going to handle themselves next time there is a protest. She also feels that it’s unfair asking students to be part of the CET because it could cause them to become a target of student criticism.

CFA’s stance on the Interim Systemwide TPM policy

Tony Silvaggio is the new president of the California Faculty Association Humboldt Chapter. Silvaggio expressed that this new policy is a “departure from past practices, it’s far more restrictive.” He feels that a lot of the activism previously done by the CFA is being limited and the wording of the TPM is so vague it could possibly be discriminatory when determining what free speech activities are allowed on campus.

“We need to remember our function is education not surveillance,” Silvaggio said.

One of Silvaggio’s concerns is that some staff on the FSRT diminished their credibility due to their decisions to immediately call police during last semester’s pro-Palestine protest which resulted in direct physical harm to students.

“It is highly problematic that Mark Johnson (Chief of Staff) is now given the responsibility to sit on this protest response team,” Silvaggio said.

The CFA has filed a lawsuit against the CSU claiming that the directive given by the chancellor violates the Higher Education Employer-Employee Act HEERA and PERB.

Hale explained that although there are concerns, at the end of the day this was a policy that had to be implemented. The goal is to have all students, faculty and staff follow this policy.

CFA is currently at the “meet and confer” stage with the CSU regarding the systemwide TPM to determine if they can come to a solution.

Administration perspectives

In a previous interview with El Leñador, Interim President Micheal E. Spagna said, “Freedom of expression, however, is not an absolute right.” He explained that freedom of speech on campus is a right but expression is what the TPM policy limits.

“More than anything, it is important to know that TPM is about protecting free speech rights for all on our campus, and ensuring that those rights can be exercised in a manner that also protects the educational mission of Cal Poly Humboldt and the safety of our campus community,” Holliday said.

Students are still confused by the legal jargon of the TPM or don’t even know what this policy is. For the students and faculty who value activism on campus this continues to be a confusing and frustrating policy with no solution.

“Sure you can say that these policies were already there but that doesn’t deny the fact that on the ethical scale and just more on a practical scale you are dealing with people…in practice you are impacting students, you are impacting people,” Mangubat said.

A TPM session is scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 3, from 4-5:30 p.m. in the Great Hall. Holliday shared that the session will include a presentation, reflection, questions and input on the TPM policy.