WASHINGTON, D.C. -George Washington University has settled with a former male student who was barred from campus due to mental health issues.
The lawsuit involved Jordan Nott who in 2004 checked himself into the hospital for depression. He also admitted that while he was in the hospital, he considered suicide. The school responded by barring him from campus, saying he violated the school’s code of conduct. Nott was also threatened with expulsion.
Terms of the settlement were not released.
Officials at the school are now considering revisions to the policy and hope to have a new policy ready soon.
Suicide policies like the ones at George Washington University were prompted a few years ago by two cases where judges ruled that schools should prevent suicides when there is reason to believe a student might take his or her own life.
How to handle troubled students continues to be a difficult issue to address. Most agree that universities can take action in some cases where a student becomes disruptive – such as those involving campus security or a midnight hospitalization. Still, most say care and compassion should be the primary considerations when make decisions involving depressed and suicidal students.
