Starr, whose investigation led to the impeachment of President Bill Clinton in the 1990s over the Monica Lewinsky sex scandal, will become the school’s chancellor, the Board of Regents said in a statement.
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AUSTIN, Texas – Ken Starr, who zealously pursued charges against a sitting USA president in a White House sex scandal, was stripped of his job as president of Baylor University on Thursday after a scathing review found that under his leadership, the school did little to respond to accusations of sexual assault involving members of its vaunted football program.
The school said the athletic department’s overall operations will be “integrated into the mainstream operations of the University” and that the school would review “policies and protocols regarding transfers and recruits as well as opportunities for Athletics personnel to integrate across non-athletics programs within the University”. Baylor University’s board of regents says it will fire football coach Art Briles a.
What’s been going on is multiple football players either convicted or accused of rape. At least seven other woman have publicly come forward to say the school ignored their sexual assault allegations.
Board of regents Chair Richard Willis, chair-elect Ron Murff, regent David Harper and Pepper Hamilton attorney Gina M. Smith spoke during the 25-minute conference call, in which regents only fielded a handful of questions and were sometimes evasive before ending the call. “We’re honestly just horrified”. “This investigation revealed the University’s mishandling of reports in what should have been a supportive, responsive and caring environment for students”.
In 2015, the school board of Baylor University commissioned the help of Philadelphia law firm, Pepper Hamilton, to investigate on cases of sexual assaults in the campus.
The Hamilton law firm’s report stated that they “found examples of actions by university administrators that directly discouraged complainants from reporting or participating in student conduct processes, or that contributed or accommodated a hostile environment”.
Ukwuachu, who was convicted in 2015, transferred to Baylor after he was dismissed from Boise State. “May God grant us grace, mercy, and peace”, Starr said.
The football team enjoyed unprecedented success under Briles’ tenure, including two Big 12 championships in the last three years. Starr, who arrived at the school in 2010, went along for the ride and often ran onto the field with students during pregame ceremonies. It was able to fund the construction of a $266 million stadium and raised $400 million for other campus projects that included a new building for business courses and a $100 million scholarship program (via Inside Higher Ed). Starr will remain the school’s chancellor, but “no longer has operating responsibilities” at Baylor. FILE – In this September 12, 2015, file photo, Baylor coach Art Briles yells from the sideline during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Lamar in Waco, Texas.
Since then, numerous reports have emerged of Baylor students who were raped and felt like their cases weren’t taken seriously.
“Turned on the news and saw Baylor is doing the same thing today”, said student Ky Mahler.
In a statement released Thursday evening, Starr said, “To be sure, this has been an exceedingly hard time for the University family, especially so for the victims of sexual violence and their loved ones”.
It was Starr who initiated the Pepper Hamilton review that would lead to his downfall, ordering it past year after former football player Sam Ukwuachu was convicted of sexually assaulting a female soccer player.
Smith said Pepper Hamilton reviewed more than one million documents, including correspondence, interviews and reports.
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The report found officials in the football program and athletics department chose not to share allegations of sexual assault against athletes with administrators outside of the athletics program.
