DeKALB | Students who have not gotten in trouble with the university may not know who Larry Bolles is. He is the director of Judicial Affairs, the person students must answer to if they get into any trouble while at NIU. The Northern Star was able to ask him a few questions recently about what he does and what keeps him doing it.

Northern Star: What exactly is it that you do?

Larry Bolles: I am responsible for the student disciplinary system. I enforce the rules in the Student Code of Conduct. My job is to get you to learn and adjust your behavior to something positive and when you get into the professional world you succeed and bloom. I slow you down and show you what can happen in the real world.

NS: So what is the craziest thing you have seen working here at NIU?

LB: One year, a freshman brought a snake that was at least 12 feet long into his room. This particular guy smoked marijuana and hid it in his vent. One night he forgot to put the cover back on the vent and when he woke up he couldn’t find his snake.

At about 3 a.m., a kid woke up a few floors below and the snake was coming out of the vent at him. He had been drinking that night and when he went to tell someone, they didn’t believe him. He was screaming, “There’s a monster in my room!”

When the police went to his room, they found the snake and then found out who the owner was. That guy got a vacation from NIU for a while – snake, marijuana and all.

NS: What other, more typical types of cases do you handle in your office?

LB: I deal with violations such as noise, alcohol, marijuana, academic misconduct, parties, theft or failure to follow instructions of university officials. Our faculty and staff keep me busy. About 7,500 cases come through here over the course of an academic school year. I also get cases from the University Police and DeKalb Police Department.

NS: Do you like disciplining students?

LB: Disciplining is a form of education, so let’s say this: I like educating students. When I levy sanctions on students, it is to educate them. It is to teach you about academic honesty. In the real world, when you commit a crime, you go to jail. In this world (NIU), you see a man named Larry Bolles. It’s all a part of a learning process.

NS: What is the most enjoyable or least enjoyable part of your job?

LB: Working with students and talking to students and moving them toward graduation. I have a great deal of students who have graduated and say I was horrible when they were here. But 10 to 15 years down the road, I have a huge following of students that say I slowed them down. They come back and thank me for showing them that they needed to follow the rules. If I had a dollar for every student that says that, I’d be a wealthy man.

Bad days are with students who just don’t care about rules and who don’t want to adjust. If you don’t care, I have to put you out for some time.

NS: How do you think you are perceived by students?

LB: I think a lot of students think I’m tough but fair. I hold people accountable for what they do. Students are unhappy with me every day, but when they think about it over time, they

reconsider.