Dr. Anita Moss should not have been relieved from teaching for “classroom management issues.” Moss is the professor who was suspended last semester for calling campus police to escort an African American student out of her classroom because the student engaged in what many considered disrespectful behavior.

In her syllabus, Moss outlined what she believed was proper classroom etiquette. Some students agreed that the etiquette rules were appropriate. Others did not. Does the university believe there should not be some type of classroom etiquette? The precedent the university is setting is that students may act in any manner they see fit and teachers aren’t allowed to do anything to stop them.

Furthermore, by relieving Moss of her teaching duties, university administrators are also doing a disservice to all of the students who signed up for that course specifically because Moss was teaching it. Before most students select a class, they usually go to ratemyprofessor to determine if other students enjoyed taking that professor.

UTSA student Jenna Wells has created an online petition advocating for Moss to be reinstated. It currently has approximately 645 signatures. If you believe Anita Moss should be reinstated, go to change.org to sign the petition.

If UTSA administrators hope to show that they care about their faculty and students, then they should reinstate Moss. If UTSA thinks they should put their students first, then they should reinstate Moss. If UTSA believes their teachers can use their best judgement when dictating what is proper etiquette in their own classroom, then they should reinstate Moss.

If UTSA disagrees with a faculty members policy, then UTSA should remove the policy rather than the professor.

Students have spoken: their evaluations show that Moss is an excellent teacher; their petition shows that students want Moss in the classroom. The university should listen to those most affected by the decision and reinstate Anita Moss.