A criminal trespass warning in May has been lifted.
By Zachary-Taylor Wright
zwright9@student.alamo.edu
According to a letter provided by engineering sophomore Moncef Gridda from student conduct officer Manuel Flores, a no contact/no communication order was issued to Gridda May 5, barring Gridda from communicating or contacting Kayla Salwey, Student Government Association president.
A criminal trespass warning placed on Gridda May 1 was lifted May 5.
The criminal trespass warning was issued May 1 as a response to an altercation between Gridda and Salwey involving the popping of balloons during an SGA campaign event April 27.
In an interview with The Ranger June 27, Salwey said she was aware of the no contact/no communication order and said new campaign forms were created discouraging candidates from using balloons.
Salwey said this was in an effort to avoid triggering people diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and to be considerate of people with the disorder in future campaigns.
The letter defines contact as “physical contact of any sort whatsoever” and defines communication as an “exchange of any sort whatsoever, including, but not limited to “… talking, attempting to talk, staring, writing, electronic medium … telephone, via third party, gesturing, following ….”
Gridda said his concerns for accommodating the no contact/no communication order led to his decision to avoid this college and to register for the fall semester at Northwest Vista College.
A letter provided by Gridda from Jacob-Aidan Martinez, director of student conduct, states that Gridda must contact the office of student conduct if he needs to communicate with Salwey and that Gridda may not mention Salwey on any social media platforms.
Salwey said the mention of social media in the letter was not in reference to any specific event she was aware of.
The no contact/no communication order was one of three disciplinary sanctions authorized by Dr. Lisa Alcorta, vice president of student success, according to the letter.
The letter from Flores states Gridda is placed on disciplinary probation, meaning Gridda has “provisional permission to continue to attend SAC on the expectation of continual demonstration of appropriate behavior.”
The letter states the disciplinary probation will be in effect through the end of the fall semester.
Another sanction issued to Gridda in the letter is the requirement that Gridda “productively participate in counseling services” for the duration of the probationary period.
Gridda said he spoke with strategies and behavioral intervention counselors, who confirmed he was not a threat to the campus.
Gridda was awarded five days from May 5 to appeal the findings and the sanctions imposed, according to the letter from Flores.
In an interview with The Ranger June 27, Gridda said he was overwhelmed and decided to accept the outcome of the findings report.