Attn: Quillen College of Medicine re Records regarding the “Human Life Protection Act” (HOUSE BILL 1029 and Senate Bill 1257)
| Submitted | March 16, 2022 |
| Est. Completion | April 13, 2022 |
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Communications
From: Insider Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Tennessee Public Records Act, I hereby request the following records:
All publicly releasable records held by the UTHSC concerning its curriculum and training from the 2021-2022 academic year for medical students regarding abortions and abortion procedures, including but not limited to:
-Class syllabi, lecture notes, slides, and other applicable materials
-Curriculum and training materials
-Emails and other written communications to and from students and faculty regarding instruction and teaching on abortion procedures, from 1/01/2021 through the day this request is processed
Please also provide written correspondence, including emails, regarding the following state statute, signed in 2019, which will go into effect should the 1973 Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade be overturned later this year:
The “Human Life Protection Act” HOUSE BILL 1029 and Senate Bill 1257: https://wapp.capitol.tn.gov/apps/BillInfo/default.aspx?BillNumber=HB1029&GA=111 “Abortion - As enacted, enacts the Human Life Protection Act, which bans abortion in this state effective on the 30th day after the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade or an amendment to the U.S. Constitution to allow states to prohibit abortion; creates exception for situations where the abortion is necessary to prevent the death of pregnant woman or prevent serious risk of substantial and irreversible impairment of major bodily function; prohibits prosecution of a woman upon whom an abortion is performed or attempted. - Amends TCA Section 9-4-5116; Title 37, Chapter 10, Part 3; Title 39, Chapter 13, Part 2; Title 39, Chapter 15, Part 2; Title 39, Chapter 13, Part 1; Title 63, Chapter 9; Title 63, Chapter 6; Title 68 and Title 71, Chapter 5. (Companion bill has been assigned Public Chapter Number 351 by the Secretary of State.)”
Responsive records should include but not be limited to:
-Planning documents held by the university concerning the implementation of the statute
-Memos and memoranda
-Emails and other written correspondence sent to and from students, faculty and staff concerning the statute, from 1/01/2021 through the day this request is processed
-Press releases and public communications concerning the statute
The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.
In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.
Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 7 business days, as the statute requires.
This request is filed by Kent Hoover, a citizen of Tennessee, in coordination with Insider Staff.
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Tennessee Public Records Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on March 21, 2022. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Insider Staff
Good afternoon, can you please provide a status update to my March 21 request, which is now overdue? Thank you,
From: East Tennessee State University
I’m processing your request. I will be in touch regarding some clarification that may be needed. I will be in touch with you again by the close of business on Wednesday, April 13.
Thank you for the follow up email. I’ve searched my emails and did not see the one on March 21; however, I do have your April 5 request we have begun processing it.
Thanks
Joe
From: East Tennessee State University
Good afternoon. Attached are the public documents in response to the first two of your open records request.
Your request for emails is overbroad. Should you want us to produce emails, you will need to provide more clarification on the persons whom you want to conduct a search and specific search terms. If you want us to conduct that search, please provide the requested information, and we will give you an estimate of what the cost will be to conduct the request. Also, some of these emails could be considered part of a student's educational record and thereby would be protected by FERPA. The estimate I can provide would include costs associated with reviewing all correspondence to redact any confidential information.
If you have any issues opening these syllabi or other course materials, please let me know.
Thanks
Joe
Joe Smith
Senior Director of Strategic Communications
Office of University Marketing and Communications
East Tennessee State University
423-439-5707 (office)
423-943-4508 (cell)
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6- Eicosanoids 2021
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From: Insider Staff
Hi Joe, thank you for the update and these responsive records.
As for search terms on the email search, please use the following keyword terms:
“Human Life Protection Act” "HOUSE BILL 1029" "HB 1029" "Senate Bill 1257" "SB 1257" and "prohibit abortion".
In the interest of expediting this request, you may also narrow the timeframe to January 1, 2022 through April 14, 2022.
Lastly, based on the preliminary records you've reviewed so far, which specific department(s) within the medical school, and/or individual staff or faculty, do you suggest we further narrow the scope to?
From: East Tennessee State University
Thanks. The only thing I need is for you to specify the persons that you want to conduct that search? Just provide the names of the persons and I can have them to do the search.
The challenge with “all students and faculty” is that we will need to review each document that is submitted to ensure that there is no FERPA- or HIPAA-protected information. That is very time-consuming and potentially very costly.
I recommend just giving me the names of the persons whose emails you want to be searched and we can take it from there.
Thanks
Joe
From: East Tennessee State University
Just following up on this. Thanks.
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