The Faculty Assembly has requested an NIU legal expert attend an upcoming University Council meeting to testify on the legality of the Constitution test requirement.

The Assembly requested NIU Legal Counsel George Shur, who researched the requirement and issued a new interpretation of the state law, to testify at the Dec. 13 UC meeting.

J. Carroll Moody, University Council executive secretary, said the deletion of the test requirement needs UC approval and he urged the UC “to act on this as early as possible,” to allow students graduating in May to plan their schedules. December graduates still are required to take the exam.

Gary Glenn, political science professor, testified in favor of the Constitution test at Wednesday’s Faculty Assembly meeting. Glenn said he is not interested in what the law has to say, but he is more interested in the principles behind the test.

NIU students should have more than a high school civics test on the Constitution, Glenn said. NIU should make a class mandatory to fulfill the requirement, he said.

Part of the controversy stems from the exemption of community college transfer students from taking the exam, while freshmen entering NIU must take the test.

Illinois Junior College Board lawyers contest that the exam is a high school requirement and community college students have already met the requirement, Glenn said.

In other business, the SA appointed Terri Murnane as the non-voting student liaison to the Faculty Assembly. Murnane said the SA has not discussed its stance on the possible deletion of the Constitution test requirement.