Please FReepmail me if you'd like to be added to or removed from the KofC ping list.
Posted on 08/13/2006 6:53:00 AM PDT by AlaninSA
MADISON - A top University of Wisconsin-Madison official apologized Thursday for erroneously announcing the school had reached an agreement to recognize a Knights of Columbus affiliate as a student group.
The university announced late Wednesday that it had an agreement to recognize a branch of the Catholic service organization that would be open to all students. The university had earlier refused to approve the group because its membership was limited to Catholic men, violating a state anti-discrimination law.
But the group's faculty adviser, Mark Etzel, said no agreement had been reached because the Knights had not agreed to changes the university wanted to make to the group's mission and membership policies. He had objected to the announcement after it was issued, warning a school spokesman in an e-mail, "Do not release this false information to the media."
After standing by the release for most of the day on Thursday, Casey Nagy, executive assistant to UW-Madison Chancellor John Wiley, issued a statement in the afternoon saying the university mistakenly believed it had resolved the issue last night.
"For the confusion that has resulted, and the distraction from the real question -- of how to enable the good programs of the Knights organization to continue on campus -- we apologize," he said. "We will continue to work toward an accord that all parties can endorse."
The apology came after UW System President Kevin Reilly spoke with UW-Madison officials and agreed "an apology should be issued," said his spokeswoman, Kate Dixon.
The university is facing a potential lawsuit and criticism over its decision to strip recognition of a group that claims 1.7 million members worldwide and had operated on campus for 30 years. A lack of recognition means a group cannot rent space on campus, recruit students at UW-sponsored events or use the school's name in its title.
Please FReepmail me if you'd like to be added to or removed from the KofC ping list.
What happens when zealots, who refuse to acknowledge their zealotry ,are in charge of making policy.
Contact FIRE -- a great organization for defending First Amendment freedoms such as freedom of association on public and private college campuses.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.