University of Maine at Presque Isle

Location: Presque Isle, Maine
Website: http://www.umpi.edu
Type: Public
Federal Circuit: 1st Circuit

Speech Code Rating

University of Maine at Presque Isle has been given the speech code rating Red. A red light university has at least one policy that both clearly and substantially restricts freedom of speech. Read more here.

At present, FIRE has not been involved in any cases at this school.

Red Light Policies

  • Residence Hall Guide: Physical Violence or Harassment

    Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
    Last updated: October 19, 2016

    Harassment is a form of violence that can result in the intimidation of another student. Even if the harassment is unintentional (e.g., off-hand comment, joke) it still occurs and will not be tolerated. Harassment is the violation of another’s rights; it could be related to sex, races, religion, personal habits, or even to someone’s physique. It can be communicated by actions or in a verbal or written form. The right not to be harassed shall be guarded by the staff and should be honored by all students.

    » Read More

Yellow Light Policies

  • Faculty Handbook: Policy Statement on Free Speech and Assembly

    Speech Code Category: Protest and Demonstration Policies
    Last updated: October 19, 2016

    [P]rotests/demonstrations are, for the most part, limited to the exterior of campus buildings and must not impede entrance or egress in a manner that would pose a safety problem in the event of a fire or other emergency. Protests/demonstrations are prohibited within fifty (50) feet of any public entrance and should not be conducted in a manner which is intimidating or threatening to a diverse audience. Organizers wishing to demonstrate must make timely notification (usually three (3) working days) of a protest/demonstration to the University of Maine at Presque Isle Security Office.

    » Read More

  • Sexual Harassment Policy

    Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
    Last updated: October 19, 2016

    Sexual harassment includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature, including sexual assault and sexual violence. Sexual harassment, including sexual assault, can involve persons of the same or opposite sex. Consistent with the law, this policy prohibits two types of sexual harassment: …

    2. Hostile Environment: Sexual harassment that creates a hostile environment is based on sex and exists when the harassment:

    1. Is severe, pervasive, or persistent, and objectively offensive such that it denies or limits a person’s ability to participate in or benefit from the University’s programs, services, opportunities, or activities; or
    2. Unreasonably interferes with an individual’s academic or work performance. A hostile environment can be created by anyone involved in a University program or activity, such as an administrator, faculty or staff member, student, or campus guest. Offensiveness alone is not enough to create a hostile environment. Although repeated incidents increase the likelihood that a hostile environment has been created, a single serious incident, such as a sexual assault, can be sufficient.

    Determining whether conduct creates a hostile environment depends not only on whether the conduct was unwelcome to the person who feels harassed, but also whether a reasonable person in a similar situation would have perceived the conduct as objectively offensive.

    » Read More

Green Light Policies

  • University of Maine System Student Conduct Code: Violations

    Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
    Last updated: October 19, 2016

    The following violations indicate categories of conduct or activity which violate the Code. … Harassment or Intimidation: Unwelcome behavior that creates a hostile or intimidating working, educational, or living environment or behavior that unreasonably interferes with an individual’s academic or job performance and opportunities.

    » Read More

  • Creating wimps at University of Maine

    November 7, 2006

    By Jason Antebi at Family Security Matters There is one thing we definitely do not need during a time of war: wimpy Americans. Unfortunately for students at the University of Maine at Presque Isle (UMPI), the manly men that enroll as freshmen may graduate a pansy, due to the absurd campus atmosphere of political correctness.   As the Foundation for Rights in Education (FIRE) notes on their blog The Torch, UMPI has a remarkably foolish (and not to mention unconstitutional) anti-harassment rule. According to their handbook:  Even if the harassment is unintentional (e.g., an off-hand comment or joke) it still […]

    » Read More

  • Speech Code of the Month: University of Maine – Presque Isle

    November 3, 2006

    FIRE announces its Speech Code of the Month for November 2006: University of Maine – Presque Isle. The University of Maine – Presque Isle’s (UMPI’s) Residence Hall Guide contains a harassment policy that states: “Even if the harassment is unintentional (e.g., an off-hand comment or joke) it still occurs and will not be tolerated.” As a public university, UMPI cannot prohibit speech that is protected by the First Amendment. The U.S. Supreme Court has defined what schools may legitimately prohibit as harassment: conduct “so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive that it effectively bars the victim’s access to an educational opportunity […]

    » Read More