AUDIO: NCU says suspension of cheerleader is justified, punishment lenient

Jovan Johnson, Gleaner Writer



KINGSTON, Jamaica:

The Northern Caribbean University (NCU) says the punishment meted out to a 21-year-old student for her involvement in a cheerleading routine in March is justified.



NCU's vice-president Dr Beverley Cameron says the two week suspension and ban from all student activities which was given to Sha-Shana James was very lenient.

Sha-Shana says she was discriminated against as she was the only one from the team to have been punished.



During the March 4 cheerleading competition, Sha-Shana played the role of a male cake topper as her team formed a human wedding cake.



However, she says the manoeuvre has been interpreted to be a proposal that involved the alleged kissing of another female’s hand.



She also says several aspects of the routine were not prepared for vetting because everyone on the team was not present and this was communicated to the university.



However, the NCU vice-president says while the entire team was disqualified, greater punishment was given to Sha-Shana because of her lack of remorse and because she was responsible for the performance of the unapproved routine.



Cameron says the team did not even know the routine had been changed until the day of the performance.



Cameron says statements from the student to a university committee that she would break other rules influenced the ban on further participation in student activities.



She says if Sha-Shana had taken a different approach in the meeting with the Citizenship Committee, the punishment may have been different.



The NCU vice-president says NCU understands the decision is controversial but insists the institution will uphold its principles.



Cameron says if the university is satisfied that Sha-Shana’s attitude has changed, it could revisit the ban on her participation in student activities for the remaining two years she has at the institution.



A member of the NCU's student government, Darren Barrett, who sat on the committee that suspended Sha-Shana said her appearance before the body without her identification card and with a pierced tongue also influenced the punishment handed down.



The mass communication student served a two-week suspension which ended on April 4.



Sha-Shana says she is considering leaving the institution.



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