Following the spray painting of the EIU spirit rock, Joshua Reinhart, Eastern’s public information coordinator, said the dean of students office is looking into the incident.

Six people were involved in the spray painting event that took place earlier this week, security camera footage showed. Those involved sprayed “MAGA 47″ on the rock on election night .

“[Eastern’s] student standards and IGP [Internal Governing Policies] are in place outlining appropriate use of [the] spirit rock,” Reinhart said. “Individuals and organizations violating those standards are subject to disciplinary action.”

The IGP reads, “Individuals or organizations responsible for such messages may be subject to disciplinary action, with referrals to the dean of students or human resources as necessary, in accordance with EIU’s standards.”

Eastern’s police Lt. Michael Lusk said the police are helping the dean of students in identifying and sanctioning those involved.

“It does not involve what we would normally be investigating when something along the lines of criminal damage to property, but we haven’t,” Lusk said. “There technically is not a crime.”

“We’re limited in terms of what we can do as far as if there’s an actual crime or, to put it bluntly since we’re law enforcement officers, a law to enforce,” Lusk said.

Eastern’s President Jay Gatrell said the university’s dean of students is investigating the incident, messaging and the conduct of those on the livestream.

Gatrell said the purpose of the camera that recorded the students’ behavior was installed to “ensure compliance with student standards.”

Cam’ron Hardy can be reached at 581-2812 or at cahardy@eiu.edu.