2016 sex offenses on campus in 12 largest colleges in Kansas
Caelin Bragg
Lantern Staff
Emporia State University’s (ESU) recent handling of a sexual harassment allegation has sparked a discussion on how colleges handle such cases.
The allegation was directed towards Brian Schrader, a tenured professor of psychology, from a female student, who The Bulletin, ESU’s student newspaper, referred to as “Jane,” who was required to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) about the incident. The alleged incident happened on Thursday, May 4, 2017.
“Unauthorized disclosure of information related to the complaint/report, both during or after an investigation, may be considered a breach of your confidentiality obligations and an interference in the investigation,” from the “notice of confidentiality and non-retaliation” form, published by The Bulletin, Jane had to sign. “The University considers such a conduct a violation of policy, which may result in disciplinary action.”
Despite “a preponderance of evidence that Dr. Schrader abused his authority as professor and violated ESU’s sexual harassment policy,” as stated in an investigation summary by Ray Lauber, Title IX Coordinator at ESU, after the alleged incident, Schrader began working at ESU again as the academic adviser for undergraduate psychology students for the spring 2018 semester, causing Jane to break her NDA about the incident.
According to Rayna Karst, The Bulletin’s editor-in-chief, Schrader is still employed at ESU but has been removed from his position as an academic adviser, which was confirmed in a meeting with President Allison Garrett on Monday, March 5.
“[T]he most troubling aspect to me was that the university required students who reported harassment complaints to sign a non-disclosure agreement before carrying out a Title IX investigation,” Karst said. “Though the university said that this is no longer the case as of September, the practice of using NDAs, and therefore keeping pertinent information from the campus community, is not and was not in the best interest of the students.”
Butler had two of their own Title IX cases over the Fall 2017 semester. One happened prior to the semester starting, with Title IX’s investigation starting Sunday, Aug. 13, 2017 which concluded on Wednesday, Aug. 30 and found that the college’s Title IX policy was violated. The other case took place on Monday, Sept. 4 and concluded the next day on Tuesday, Sept. 5.
“Butler does not require students to sign a NDA,” Sherri Conard, Title IX coordinator, said. “We do highly recommend that those involved in an investigation do not discuss the case in order to eliminate hear-say that may compromise an investigation, but we do not require [NDAs]. Such a requirement may be considered retaliation and violates the rights of the student.”
According to Butler’s Title IX policy, “Butler Community College will discipline or take appropriate action against any student, faculty member, staff member, administrator or other College employee who retaliates against any person who reports harassment or violence under this policy.” And the policy describes retaliation as “any form of intimidation, reprisal or harassment.”
ESU’s own policy also states, among many other ways, that “[d]isciplinary action … or other adverse changes in the conditions of employment or the educational environment may also constitute retaliation.”
“In the future I would hope that the university, and other universities, would begin to practice transparency with their students,” Karst said. “In our case, President Garrett even said that Jane’s story would not have come to light without The Bulletin’s coverage. Transparency, honesty and openness are important to the safety of the students.”
Sexual harassment cases can be handled by either Title IX or the campus police. Contact for filing Title IX complaints is through Butler’s Title IX Coordinator Sherri Conard at sconard@butlercc.edu or her number (316) 218-6373. Butler’s Department of Public Safety’s number is (316) 321-7657 or 911 for emergencies.
“The big thing: They [got to] say something to somebody,” Chief of Police Jason Kenney said. “Title IX, us [Butler Public Safety Department], Nancy Hamm, get with a counselor and talk with her, talk to an instructor, all that kind of stuff and get the information up, … but don’t just let it make you a victim. Take that power back and fix it.”
Butler also offers counseling through the sole counselor Nancy Hamm, who is located in the West Residence Hall, 1100 building, on the El Dorado campus, and is also available at nhamm2@butlercc.edu or (316) 322-3162 ((316) 733-3162 from the Wichita Metro area).
