Message from VP for External Relations Kelly Chezum
Some Weekend Reading for Those who Want to Become More Politically Active: Statement on Student Voting & College Political Campaign-Related Activities in 2020 from American Council on Education
Clarkson Community,
Political activities and campaigning are already well underway in the presidential and congressional races as well as several other NYS and regional elected positions.
As a matter of respecting the exercise of our First Amendment freedom, the University will welcome the efforts of any member of the Clarkson Community who wishes to participate in political campaigns using personal time with personal resources. Good citizenship certainly starts with registering to vote and going to the polls. Some in the Clarkson Community, however, may wish to do more in relation to political campaigns than vote, and this message is intended to be most helpful to such individuals.
As a tax exempt institution, Clarkson must follow specific guidelines that limit the scope of activities that the institution, and the institution’s employees, may pursue. For example, because Clarkson’s mission is education, the institution must exercise extreme caution around the use of University resources in the political process because actions that are politically partisan, rather than educational, are prohibited by law.
Although the line separating the political from the educational occasionally blurs, the rule to follow is simple: except for strictly educational purposes, University resources may not be used in support of political activities, including political campaign activities. University resources include all Clarkson property including any office supplies or equipment such as computers and duplicating machines, clarkson.edu email accounts, Zoom accounts and other physical and electronic resources not available to the general public. Because the University’s greatest resource is its employees, employees may not engage in political campaign activities, or direct any member of the faculty or staff to engage in such activities, when they are at work for the University and in activities where they are being compensated with University funds.
This restriction on employee activity applies to any situation where an employee, explicitly or implicitly, represents the University as an employee of Clarkson, whether on behalf of a department, program, unit, or the University as an institution. It also includes any activity in which an observer of a public meeting might reasonably believe that the employee is acting on behalf of the University. In any such public activity, the Clarkson employee should self-identify at the event or discussion forum as an individual expressing her/his own political views and not those of the University or the views of official representatives of the University.
You may find some but not all of your questions answered by a guidance document *available from the American Council on Education (PDF format).
These are also a number of compliance-related provisions that need to be followed if a political candidate visits campus — including virtually visiting campus — as part of his or her official or unofficial campaigning activities. If you are planning to include candidates running for office in activities on campus including class time, please contact VP Kelly Chezum for a review of the options. For further information or to follow-up on unanswered questions, please contact Kelly Chezum, VP for External Relations, at kchezum@clarkson.edu.
Thanks. Kelly