Michigan State President Simon Responds to Cedar Fest Riot

Michigan State University president Lou Anna Simon posted a statement today on her blog reacting to the disturbances of Cedar Fest from this past weekend.

Particularly interesting from President Simon’s statement are the references to how social media and the Internet played a part in orchestrating the event. For all the students who fail to recognize how an event such as this impacts the image of Michigan State University across the state and across the globe, President Simon’s remarks are most poignant when quoted at length:

“The scenes of rioting and violence in the media and on the internet will be the only introduction for many across the state and around the country to East Lansing and MSU. It may also be the introduction that prospective employers have to future job applicants, which is another use for the technology employed by those who encouraged the weekend’s events. Social networks such as Facebook and You Tube are increasingly used by human resource professionals to check the backgrounds and behaviors of potential employees. The repercussions for some attendees of Cedar Fest may not come today or tomorrow, but may be felt in the not too distant future when they embark on their first job search after graduation.“

I know first hand that employers use the Internet to learn about prospective employees including social networking sites and site that feature user-submitted content. I know, because I’ve used them myself for that very purpose. Your online reputation is just as important as your offline reputation, in some cases it is more important. Why do I need to know what your references say about you when I can go online and find out what YOU say about you?

Your degree is only worth as much as the school representing it. And that school is only as good as the students who have come through, and those that are at the school at the time. A degree is not merely a document proclaiming the consummation of the academic program you participated in. It is a living document that changes with age. Don’t believe me? What if your school closed it’s doors tomorrow? No more classes, no more research, no more alumni. Your degree, over time, would become worthless. The circumstances that are related to your school over time affect the perception of your degree, and thus, the perception of you as an individual.

President Simon’s statement also indicates that such social networking sites may be used to by the East Lansing police department to identify students engaging in illegal activity during Cedar Fest and making further arrests. ”A meeting was held…,” Ms. Simon’s post states, “…to begin the process of using technology to identify others who may be arrested subsequently.”

“The reckless behavior of the individuals who set in motion…the unlawful activity that occurred at ‘Cedar Fest’ will have consequences,” Ms. Simon’s statement says, indicating that the individual that used Facebook to organize the event may face charges from the university.

I’ve tried to find as much decent video of Cedar Fest as I could. Below are a few clips I think are worth posting. The first clip appears to be the b-roll of WLNS footage of Cedar Fest.

This second one is probably the best footage that I’ve found. I just wish they didn’t have the musical overlay.

I’m still looking for the URL for the Facebook event for Cedar Fest. If you have the URL, or even just screenshots, please send them along.