Syracuse University officials and faculty members spoke about Saturday’s assault on Ackerman Avenue and gave updates on several university policies and services at Wednesday’s University Senate meeting.

In response to a question about the assault from Senator and political science professor Mark Rupert, Chancellor Kent Syverud said he’s aware of the incident and is concerned for various reasons, including student safety.

Department of Public Safety Chief Bobby Maldonado at the meeting said that the assault occurred in the Syracuse Police Department’s jurisdiction, but DPS was dispatched anyway. He said DPS is not involved in the investigation or the collection of evidence, but that SPD has provided some information.

Cameras on Euclid Avenue were reviewed and captured some pictures related to the incident, but the images were not sufficient to identify anyone, Maldonado said. He said the individuals left Euclid Avenue before turning onto Lancaster Avenue and then Redfield Place.

Obi Afriyie, a graduate student and Senator, asked Maldonado why DPS did not release a statement to keep students updated on the assault. Maldonado said DPS has to be sensitive to the fact that the SPD investigation is currently ongoing.

“We have to be very careful not to compromise their investigation in any way because a compromise in the investigation might compromise justice for these students in the future,” Maldonado said.

Keith Alford, SU’s chief diversity officer, said although the investigation is ongoing, more can be done to address and clarify issues surrounding the assault for students, as well as to make students feel safe on and around campus.

 

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“We know that we live in a society where hate crime exists, and we see it every day,” Alford said. “We certainly don’t want to see it here.”

Dean of Students Robert Hradsky said there will be a forum for students to discuss the assault on Friday at 4:30 p.m.

During his report at the beginning of the meeting, Syverud spoke about the university policies surrounding sexual assault and the university’s decision to stay open during winter weather.

He said the Senate’s Academic Freedom, Tenure and Professional Ethics Committee; the Office of General Counsel and the Office of Equal Opportunity, Inclusion, and Resolution Services will work to improve the procedure for responding to complaints of sexual assault and harassment against faculty. They will also make sure new faculty go through appropriate background checks surrounding sexual assault.

The Agenda Committee asked for draft recommendations to be submitted by the end of the semester, Syverud said.

With regard to the school staying open during severe weather, Syverud said he asked Senior Vice President for Safety Tony Callisto and Chief Communications Officer Dara Royer to determine how to communicate closing decisions in a more timely and comprehensible way.

Decisions on whether to stay open are made by the university’s Emergency Management Response Team based on weather reports, how much disruption a closing would cause and the condition of the college, Syverud said.

“I believe those decisions were made in accordance with the protocol,” he said. “I also believe the university fell short in how it implemented the decisions and how it communicated those decisions with our campus community.”

Other business

The Senate passed a proposal build a committee that will determine how the university should address its salary appeal policy and transparency. Diane Grimes and Laurel Morton of the Senate’s Women’s Concerns Committee presented the bill at the Senate’s January meeting.

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Published on February 13, 2019 at 10:01 pm

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