Some UT Dallas, Austin students unable to get their degrees after participating in college protests
RICHARDSON, Texas - The University of Texas system is taking disciplinary action against students arrested at pro-Palestinian protests last month.
Part of the punishment includes temporarily withholding degrees.
Nearly a month past graduation day at UT Dallas, and it's not just the pending criminal proceedings still up in the air for some of the students who were arrested.
Although college campuses have mostly returned to normal after pro-Palestinian protests that marked the end of the spring semester, university officials at UT Dallas and UT Austin are moving forward with disciplinary measures.
Mousa Najjar was a UT Dallas senior when he was among the 21 arrested for criminal trespassing on May 1 after protesters refused a university request to remove their encampment.
The request warned students refusing to do so could lead to sanctions under the student code of conduct.
"We made sacrifices for the Palestinian cause, regardless," he said.
Najjar told the Dallas Morning News this week that he still hasn't received his degree or transcripts.
Meanwhile, UT Austin officials sent letters in recent days to students arrested at protests there. It emphasized the students were not being arrested for protesting but for violating university policy.
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UT Austin said in a statement, "The university has made clear that we enforce institutional rules, and the conduct notices sent to students who violated our rules during protests on April 24 and 29 reflect that commitment."
UT Austin officials say degrees and transcripts can be withheld temporarily and are often lifted as soon as a student completes the student conduct process.
UT Dallas officials did not respond to FOX 4’s request for comment on ongoing disciplinary measures there.
The university's code of conduct outlines possible punishments ranging from a written warning to community punishment to a more severe denial of a degree.