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The moment I knew that nothing would come of my claims that the @LinfieldUniv President and Board Chair had religiously harassed me was when I went to the head of HR, and she said: “Personally, I don’t believe the Jews have a secret agenda to grab power at all!” (1/23)
The moment I knew that nothing would come of my claims that the @LinfieldUniv President and Board Chair had religiously harassed me was when I went to the head of HR, and she said: “Personally, I don’t believe the Jews have a secret agenda to grab power at all!” (1/23)
The head of HR told me that she had a Jewish neighbor who was the nicest man, and he would never try to grab power or anything like that. I had gone to HR because as the faculty trustee (and, as far as I knew, the only openly Jewish trustee) on the @LinfieldUniv Board… (2/23)
I had reported that four @LinfieldUniv trustees were accused of sexual misconduct by students and faculty over the past year. That’s more than 10% of the Board. Three of those trustees are still on the Board. (3/23) https://thelinfieldreview.com/23083/news/former-senior-board-member-facing-multiple-allegations-of-sex-abuse-other-linfield-trustees-facing-accusations-of-similar-misconduct/
Just to be clear, I was following the primary definition of sexual misconduct according to @LinfieldUniv policy: “any intentional sexual touching, however slight, with any object or body part, by any person upon any other person, without consent” (4/23) https://inside.linfield.edu/_files/policies/Options-and-Resources_Matters-of-Sexual-Misconduct.pdf
It turned out that one of the @LinfieldUniv trustees, David Jubb, had previously been accused of sexually assaulting three students. Jubb remained on the board. The Chair was supposed to keep Jubb away from students and alcohol. He didn’t. (5/23) https://www.oregonlive.com/crime/2020/05/linfield-college-graduate-accuses-school-of-ignoring-her-abuse-complaint-allowing-board-member-to-strike-again.html
The student trustee on the @LinfieldUniv Board said that Jubb then sexually assaulted her. After she filed a lawsuit, all the other allegations started to come to light. (6/23) https://www.oregonlive.com/business/2019/12/longtime-linfield-college-board-member-david-jubb-sexually-assaulted-student-lawsuit-says.html
I told the @LinfieldUniv Board Chair that we needed to think proactively about sexual harassment training and guidelines for proper trustee behavior. To my surprise, the Chair accused me—a Jewish trustee—of harboring a secret agenda to grab power. (7/23)
The Chair told me that the @LinfieldUniv Board never had a problem until I became a trustee. The Chair told me that if I really cared about sexual misconduct, I would be going after the faculty, who, he said, were the true predators. (8/23)
Then the President withheld my report to the Board. He told me that I was putting @LinfieldUniv at risk by reporting claims of sexual misconduct. The President threatened me with personal liability. (9/23)
Having previously made comments to me about measuring the size of Jewish noses, the @LinfieldUniv President also said that people like me were overreacting to the appearance of swastikas on campus. (10/23)
Finally, the President said that people like me were destroying @LinfieldUniv from within and could only show loyalty by accepting the teachings of Jesus Christ in the New Testament. That’s when I went to HR. (11/23)
I also reported the President’s and Chair’s comments to the full @LinfieldUniv Board. They censored my report and told me that I could not raise these issues outside of confidential executive sessions. Then they banned me from executive sessions. (12/23) https://thelinfieldreview.com/23200/news/multiple-pages-about-sexual-misconduct-were-redacted-from-a-may-faculty-trustee-report/
The Board’s lawyer threatened me with public humiliation if I continued to report sexual misconduct by Linfield trustees. Then the Chair sent an open letter to the entire @LinfieldUniv community calling me “shameful” and “malicious.” (13/23) https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/7012347-Baca-Statement-Final-7-30-20-1.html
The @LinfieldUniv Faculty Assembly passed a vote of no confidence in the Chair of the Board. The Board dismissed it. The Faculty Executive Council wrote a letter detailing the Board’s repeated abuses of power. The Board dismissed it. (14/23) https://www.oregonlive.com/education/2020/06/linfield-college-board-stands-by-embattled-chair-david-baca-students-call-for-his-resignation-over-handling-of-sex-abuse-case.html
At their next meeting after the Faculty Assembly’s vote of no confidence, the @LinfieldUniv Board abolished the Faculty Assembly. Students protested. They were ignored. I asked the Board to adopt an anti-retaliation policy. The Board refused. (15/23) https://thelinfieldreview.com/23168/news/students-protest-the-boards-decision-to-keep-chairman-baca/
Independent investigations substantiated the allegations against @LinfieldUniv trustees, but we were told that no Linfield policy was violated. Since the President’s comments about Jewish noses occurred in private, they couldn’t be substantiated. (16/23) http://taxioffduty.blogspot.com/2020/05/linfield-trustee.html
I’ve just learned that the @LinfieldUniv Board now intends to get rid of the faculty and student trustees. They also plan to renew the President’s contract and re-elect the same Chair who failed to protect students from trustees accused of sexual assault. (17/23)
That’s the same Chair who accused me of a secret agenda to grab power. The same Chair whom HR was told they could not investigate because he is technically not a @LinfieldUniv employee. The same Chair who has refused to permit an independent review of the President. (18/23)
That’s the same Chair who told me he wasn’t going to make @LinfieldUniv trustees become “Puritans” just because students and faculty didn’t want to be touched. The same Chair who said a female trustee’s concern was “an emotional reaction uninformed by current needs.” (19/23)
I have previously declined to speak publicly about what I’ve experienced, because the Board said I couldn’t. I’m afraid that the Board will respond by further punishing my students and colleagues, who have far less institutional privilege at @LinfieldUniv than I do. (20/23)
But the damage is already underway. And it breaks my heart when students ask me what they can do if they’re upset about what’s happening at @LinfieldUniv. They often ask me if it’s safe for them to report their concerns to the President and the Board. (21/23)
I wish I could reassure them. I wish I could tell my students that it’s safe for them to go to the President and the Board. But I can’t. I know first-hand that retaliation at @LinfieldUniv is real. (22/23)
That’s why I’m speaking out now: because the @LinfieldUniv President and Board will continue to abuse their power until someone with more authority stops them. (23/23)
