Our Letter to Kenyon College’s President
When I read Michael Hayes’ letter about his sister’s rape and Kenyon’s subsequent handling of her case I immediately wanted to find a way to become involved. I wanted President Decatur, the Board of Trustees, and the rest of the administration to understand that this wasn’t an isolated event: It didn’t only consume the thoughts of current Kenyon students, but also touched those of us who have come and gone from Gambier and were also impacted by sexual assault. I wanted Kenyon to know that there have been generations of hurt and attempts to change not only the bureaucratic system surrounding sexual assault, but also the culture.
Writing this letter took the minds and the words of many alumni. This collaborative process reminded me of why I do love Kenyon. Working with alumni who I knew during my time on The Hill as well as those who I had never met exemplified the passion and empathy of the larger Kenyon community.
Those of us who penned this letter — Me, Olivia Grabar Sage ‘15, McKinley Sherrod ‘14, Charlie Collison ‘15, Jenny Ruymann ‘15 and Heather Benjamin ’04 — see it as a starting point, a way to get begin the conversation and work towards specific changes we would like to see implemented.
Jenny Ware ‘15
Our Letter to Kenyon President Decatur
Signed by 789 Alumni from the Classes of 1973 to 2015
Friday, April 29th, 2016
Dear President Decatur,
On Wednesday, April 27, a private online forum was created for alumni to share thoughts, concerns, and ideas in response to the blog post in which Michael Hayes detailed his sister’s rape and its aftermath. The group was created out of concern about sexual assault and violence on campus and, as of this afternoon, had over 900 members and continues to expand. In addition to showing solidarity with current students and sharing our own experiences with these issues, we hope to promote changes in policies and procedures that benefit the entire Kenyon community.
The forum is private in order to keep the thoughts and concerns of its members safe, but we want to share our perspectives with you here. This letter is written in the true spirit of the Kenyon community — it incorporates the voices of graduates from across class years, including former sexual misconduct advisors, victims of sexual assault (both on campus and off), and concerned allies. Unfortunately, many of us who are sexual assault survivors or friends of survivors painfully identify with Chelsie Hayes’ story; we fear there has long been a pattern of sweeping issues of sexual assault and violence on campus under the rug.
Our goal is not to attack or shame Kenyon. We all had important, formative experiences there, and many of us continue to look back on our days at Kenyon with fondness and nostalgia. Rather, our goal is to encourage the administration to institute policies that will change the culture, as well as the judiciary proceedings, surrounding sexual misconduct on campus. Kenyon — both the institution and community — must support and fight for justice for victims of sexual assault. We believe Kenyon has the capacity to lead, not follow, when it comes to compliance with Title IX and creating a culture of respect, understanding, and compassion.
During the process of your deliberation, and as part of the external review, there are several action items we think the college must address to ensure that Kenyon is a place where, first and foremost, sexual assault does not happen:
- Implementation of policies and programs that not only deal with sexual assault once it has occurred, but works to prevent it from ever occurring. Infrastructure and support for students who are assaulted on and off campus must be improved through better funding and proper staffing and trauma training for the Counseling Center.
- Sexual Misconduct Advisors: SMAs need a more thorough vetting and training process, as well as sufficient funding for increased campus programming.
- Counseling Center: It is clear that the Counseling Center needs more funding and education about how to respond to student concerns. We have heard stories of students not receiving adequate aid from counselors in the wake of sexual assault. This is not because of a lack of concern, but rather because the counseling center is understaffed and counselors are over-worked.
- First-Year Programming: First-year programming, including Beer & Sex and Real World Gambier, need to be reassessed. While these are well-organized and important programs, freshmen are often unreceptive to their messages. Programming about sexual responsibility should occur throughout the year, and throughout a student’s time at Kenyon.
- Implementation of community accountability approaches to sexual assault. Sexual and domestic violence often place the onus on the victim to report their assault and find ways to keep themselves safe. The College has an opportunity to foster a community in which victims receive explicit and implicit support from all levels (staff, faculty, and peers), and perpetrators are consistently held accountable.
- Review and revision of the hearing process to be more transparent and efficient. In addition to being clearly outlined and disseminated, the hearing process should aim to reduce psychological distress, and guard the privacy and autonomy of vulnerable parties. Outcomes of all hearings should be made public and easily accessible, while maintaining the anonymity of involved parties.
As graduates, donors, and — most importantly — people who have shaped Kenyon and been shaped by it, we expect the voices of students past and present be involved in the upcoming audit of the college’s implementation of Title IX policy, as well as other decisions the College makes about matters of sexual misconduct.
Please consider us allies when it comes to getting to zero tolerance of sexual assault and violence at Kenyon, and a safer, more compassionate campus culture.
