Stanford Provost John Etchemendy has lifted the suspension on the Leland Stanford Junior University Marching Band (LSJUMB) and accepted their proposal to address issues about its organizational conflict. The said suspension was lifted last Thursday through a letter after the student group submitted an appeal and committed to make necessary reforms, Stanford Daily reported.
The band was placed under "provisional status" for the rest of the academic year, granting them the permission to participate in activities while preserving the band as a "vibrant and ongoing student organization," according to his letter. However, the travel ban will still remain in effect until the provisional status ends.
It was only last month when the Band was suspended because it has violated rules on campus alcohol, and bans on drinking and travelling, according to Mercury News. There were reported incidents of alleged hazing, sexual harassment and alchohol-abuse.
In the letter lifting the suspension, Etchemendy was moved by the way the Band appealed because he felt that they have "acknowledged their past failures to achieve its own ideal of inclusiveness."
The Band explained that if they will be suspended for the remainder of the year, it would be crippling their organization. It also outlined the steps they are going to take for the improvement of their organization and redesign the structure for an effective culture change.
Previously, the Band was called by Boardman incapable of implementing change which led the Band to respond that highlights the importance of taking student actions when it comes to transforming culture.
While the Band is still on provisional status, they will remain a recognized student organization and will still be able to continue rehearsing, holding membership meetings and other related activities. They also wrote that even if the suspension was already lifted, their work and progress will not end there.
