The Undergraduate Assembly passed a proposal last night to have facebook photos posted in the online student directory. The addition would be on an opt-in basis.
The proposal recommends that the new feature be made accessible only to the University's undergraduate students. Current directory information can be accessed by the public through Penn's Web site.
Discussed in last week's meeting, the refined proposal -- the initial version of which did not specify whether students would have the option of posting their pictures -- will now be presented to University officials in the coming week.
If the proposal is accepted, the changes will be implemented next January, when the system is scheduled for an update.
This addition will "better facilitate the working relationships and familiarity amongst each other," the UA said in their proposal.
Yale University and Washington University in St. Louis have already implemented online facebooks -- also only accessible to the student body.
Many students said they were pleased with the proposal.
"I personally wouldn't be for it, but it's a good idea -- as long as it is an optional service," College freshman Angelica Krut said.
Students also said that privacy concerns would not have a place in this proposal.
When you submit your picture to the University, like for your PennCard, it's a form of identification," Wharton freshman Aziz Lalljee said. "A picture would not violate privacy issues."
Yet the proposal acknowledges that current University policy regards photographs to be nondisclosable information.
Currently, pictures of students "may be disclosed only to University officials with a legitimate educational or institutional interest," according to University policy.
Finally, many said that in order for this choice to be viable, students would have to be informed of their options reagarding the posting of their pictures.
"If a student wants to, it's fine," Wharton sophomore Stephanie Sargent said. "As long as the student is contacted and informed."
