Committee reviewing canvassing at UCCS

When the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs decided to limit free publications to its main building on campus, it seemed like a harmless way to reduce litter.

Not everyone saw it that way, though. Some on campus have called the new rule an assault on free speech, and in recent weeks the controversy has flowed through campus e-mails and the school paper.

UCCS Chancellor Pam Shockley-Zalabak formed a committee to review it.

The committee may decide to allow publications in other buildings if the distributors agree to certain rules, such as cleaning up, said UCCS spokesman Tom Hutton.

A new student recreation center and remodeled Dwire Hall recently opened. But as the school has grown, groundskeeping staff has shrunk.

“We have fewer people responsible for more space,” he said.

By limiting publications from the Colorado Springs Independent to coupons to the University Center, the campus’s busiest building, the school says it could cut back on employees’ workloads.

But others say many people don’t spend time in the University Center, since UCCS is mostly a commuter campus.

“I think it’s limiting access,” said Jugal Kalita, a computer science professor. “Theoretically it’s still out there, but it’s difficult to get to.”

The new rule coincided with a promotion by a civic nonprofit group to distribute free copies of The New York Times on campus. Some people interpreted the move as retaliation against The New York Times and screamed censorship.

Hutton said that the two events were coincidental, and that UCCS supports the nonprofit, called American Democracy Project.

Recommendations from the committee could come today, Hutton said.

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