MSU president speaks out on sexual assault cases
From an email forwarded to me:
Dear MSU community member,
As we approach the end of the school year, you likely are continuing to see media stories or comments related to the issue of sexual assault at MSU, either surrounding former MSU doctor Larry Nassar or allegations made against members of the MSU football program. Following the announcement of several new initiatives at April’s Board of Trustees meeting, I want to provide an update on our response to this critical situation.
First, I want to once again acknowledge the courage of all victims of sexual violence who come forward to share their story with police or campus investigators. On behalf of Michigan State University, I recognize the pain sexual violence causes and express how deeply we regret any time someone in our community experiences it.
Sexual violence has no place at Michigan State University. For those who have experienced abuse, I want to ensure you have access to the resources available at MSU and in the community to support you. More information can be found on the Title IX website at http://titleix.msu.edu/find-resources/index.html.Over the past few years, we have dedicated significant new resources to strengthen our approach to create a safe and supportive campus environment, including:
- Introducing and revising our Relationship Violence and Sexual Misconduct policy
- Creating the Office of Institutional Equity in 2015 to coordinate and direct MSU’s Title IX program and investigate reported incidents
- Devoting more resources and personnel to our Sexual Assault Program
- Requiring all students to complete an annual online training program
- Requiring all employees to complete an online training program biennially
Today, the Association of American Universities, a group of 62 leading universities including MSU, published a report on the actions its members are taking to prevent and respond to sexual assault and sexual misconduct. Based on the results of a new survey, the report shows AAU universities, including MSU, are making significant improvements and devoting substantial resources to efforts that address the issue. More information can be found at https://www.aau.edu/aau-campus-activities-report-combating-sexual-assault-and-misconduct.
Here on campus, many partners have stepped up and are making positive contributions. The Sexual Violence Advisory Committee, the Violence Free Communities committee, Faculty Senate and student leaders such as ASMSU and COGS are playing key roles, and we are grateful for their commitment. Our continuous effort to educate and inform is resulting in an increased number of reports; that is a positive thing, an indicator of a culture that encourages reporting.
While I take some comfort in the strong collective work of our community, we must do more. Sexual assault still plagues our campus and society at large. Creating change requires focused and meaningful work, a dedication to continuous learning and improvement, and the discipline to sustain our efforts. MSU is committed to taking steps now and over the long run.
When we began the process of revamping our Title IX program in 2014, we planned on assessing it once the program was running for a couple of years. Given all the issues surrounding sexual assault, I feel it is prudent to accelerate the timeline for this review. I will be engaging independent experts to conduct a top-to-bottom review of our Title IX program this fall. The review will allow us to assess our progress and identify opportunities to refine and build on this work for the future.
Sexual assault takes many forms, and as we have seen with the investigation into Nassar, it impacted the lives of his patients whose trust he abused. A review of MSU HealthTeam policies and practices begun in fall 2016 and completed in March 2017 has strengthened policies regarding informed consent and the role of exam-room chaperones. Those policies went into effect April 15. We are now reviewing national experts to conduct a third-party quality and safety assurance review as we continue our commitment to achieving the highest patient care and safety standards across all MSU clinics. We expect that review to begin this summer.
Finally, while determined sexual predators and pedophiles—people who often exploit positions of personal and professional trust—are very difficult to detect and stop, we at MSU will do all we can not only to safeguard our patients but also to continue to protect youth who come to our campus in all capacities. Building on a programmatic effort that began in 2013, we are introducing a revised and enhanced youth protection policy and additional education. It is our moral obligation to protect all young people on our campus, in all circumstances.
I recognize sexual assault and child sexual abuse are societal issues; however, we cannot dismiss them as insurmountable. We are committed to continuing our work to improve our response, education, and prevention efforts at MSU. We are determined to be better tomorrow than we are today.Lou Anna K. Simon, Ph.D.
President
April 26th, 2017 at 10:43 PM ^
Well, yeah. Should anyone have expected a statement that wasn't vetted?
Also, did not realize that Mary Sue Coleman was now acting as President of the AAU. A good role for her, I think.
She writes the intro to the report the OP cites - which is why I bring this up.
That last line is amusing, "We are determined to be better tomorrow than we are today."
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At least than they were yesterday. Putting things off until tomorrow means they often don't get done at all, at least for a procrastinator like me.
Simon's last sentence was stolen from Michigan's head football coach:
"We are determined to be better tomorrow than we are today."
We always strive to be better tomorrow than we are today. Check out our 5 focus areas in #Sustainably: http://t.co/qE3d3EIyhF #HappyEarthDay
— McDonald's (@McDonalds) April 22, 2013
That was a lot of words for something which really says nothing.
I wouldn't expect her to take responsibility, but this seems even colder and more detached than I would have thought.
Assuming they deserve it, I hope they get hammered hard in court.
What should Simon have said, that wouldn't have missed the opportunity? In light of the ongoing investigation and her obligation to represent all of the university community, I'm not sure of what stronger statement she should have made.
Very disappointing. Agree with NFG above...Tried to create the narrative of MSU being like the rest of society, and not take responsibility for their own culture.
Nassar may indeed be a lone wolf pedo, but all the ignored complaints are on the administration over there. Just like at PSU, there was plenty of opportunity to stop this "difficult to detect" pedophile, but those in power actively chose to ignore the problem.
1 case of reported sexual assault is enough to launch a full on investigation into the accusations. MSU failed both with Nassar and the football program to get their shit in order and catch this early to save other victims.
This letter is pathetic and puts MSU in the class of PSU and Baylor in terms of fostering environments of abuse and coverup.
Is that a reasonable observation?
April 26th, 2017 at 10:10 PM ^
Simon reiterated previous apologies to Nassar’s accusers, but she also left open the possibility that nothing more could have been done.“I have been told it is virtually impossible to stop a determined sexual predator and pedophile, that they will go to incomprehensible lengths to keep what they do in the shadows,” she told trustees.
You see everyone, there was simply nothing MSU could've done!
Truly an incredible thing for her to say. I suppose she's trying to convince us that somehow MSU was not guilty of harboring this scum despite clear warnings and complaints for 20 years.
April 26th, 2017 at 10:54 PM ^
From my experience, is it not a requirement that there should always be a member of the same sex present for any medical procedures...especially in the case of a male doctor treating underage female patients...wouldnt the standard be at a mimimum a female nurse or parent present for any treatment??
April 26th, 2017 at 11:18 PM ^
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April 26th, 2017 at 10:14 PM ^
I have the opportunity to serve on a University-wide committee, and these events and the ramifications and consequences that are imminent have been agenda items at every meeting this year. Safe to say that MSU is bracing for serious impact.
April 26th, 2017 at 10:34 PM ^
You don't know what the hell you're talking about, do you?
How long is MSU grad Carol Siemon going to drag this out?
I find it hard to believe that she doesn't have the info she needs by now.
April 26th, 2017 at 10:46 PM ^
That part made me laugh.
Seriously though, they have done a great job keeping this relatively quiet until now - i.e., quiet relative to the gravity of the situation. I have a neighbor whose duaghter is at State and he had no idea about the Nassar situation and the (alleged) sexual assaults involving multiple football team members.
I've seen more coverage on the news of Peppers drinking too much water than this. Granted I really don't watch the news.
Does anyone here have a general sense of the expected timeline on the Title IX case going forward? Is this about to wrap up, or is it expected to drag out for years like most NCAA investigations?
talk with Izzo and Dantonio about the type of players they recruit since they seem to commit most of these crimes.
And, when they're caught perhaps they should not be allowed to start in their respective sport for all four years. Another option would be to remove them from the team and the university.
Maybe a talk with Mark Hollis would also be a good idea. Since he does not understand that when you turn a blind eye to what is going on you are as complicit in the assault and those who commit it.
i'm waiting for the creativity they use to let the big 3 and blackwell off the hook
April 27th, 2017 at 12:56 PM ^
They can stand back and let the prosectutor throw the book at Robertson which will show that there can be negative consequences in EL and then they can quietly drop the charges on the others and welcome them back on the team.
Call me a cynic, but from Day 1 I have expected the whole thing on the Big 3 to be dropped. It has just taken longer than I expected.
Honestly it will take something more than even firing the coaches to make a real difference. I have a hunch if this was happening at an Ivy they would shut down the football program. It's by and large athletics that is behind so much of the crime in general and certainly rapes on campuses
blah blah blah, blah blah blah, we are against sexual assault, blah blah blah.
I say put Simon on redlock status.
Oh—yeah—Victory for MSU! /s