The San Jose State Associated Students Board of Directors met Tuesday on Zoom and discussed the impact of the Department of Justice’s report, which verified the university’s Title IX violations and retaliation claims.
SJSU inadequately responded to cases of female student-athlete sexual assault at the hands of Scott Shaw, former director of sports medicine who retired in August 2020, and cases of retaliation in the Atheltics Department, according to the Tuesday Justice Department statement.
The department further stated SJSU will financially compensate those who were sexually harassed and/or assaulted by Shaw and those who came forward to participate in the Justice Department’s Title IX investigation or SJSU’s internal investigations.
A.S. President Anoop Kaur allotted agenda time during the meeting to address victims and affected campus community members.
“I want to take a moment to thank and acknowledge the current and former students who came forward to share their experiences and the university employees who increasingly advocated for their students,” Kaur said during the meeting. “Their voices are powerful, and because of you, SJSU will adopt major reforms to prevent such an abuse of authority from ever happening again.”
The Justice Department offered $125,000 to each of the 23 individuals who participated in the investigation, which will be paid by the university, according to the SJSU For Your Information (FYI) webpage, which details the university’s statements regarding Shaw’s reinvestigation.
Out of the 23 individuals, 13 have accepted the offer so far, according to the same webpage.
Kaur addressed SJSU President Mary Papazian’s Tuesday campuswide email regarding the Justice Department’s statement in Tuesday’s meeting.
In the email, Papazian stated SJSU cooperated with the review done by the department. In response, she said the university will restructure and expand the Title IX office.
Public relations senior Emily Rainey said the university must investigate every Title IX claim thoroughly and commit to proper repercussions.
“The university, probably along with A.S., needs to come up with a plan that ensures safety for all their students and especially student-athletes,” Rainey said in a text message. “And if an allegation isn’t followed through with, consequences [should] be involved.”
Kaur discussed some of the preventative measures SJSU will take in regards to Title IX to prevent similar cases of sexual assault.
One of the programs is the Sports Medicine Wellbeing Attendant [Chaperone], Examination and Treatment Policy, she said.
The goal of the policy is to protect student-athletes’ privacy and dignity while creating more effective communication between university staff during any “Sports Medicine Encounter,” according to the policy document.
SJSU states in the document that a well-being attendant is an individual who acts as an “objective observer” for student-athletes and athletic staff during training sessions.
A student-athlete may request a gender-specific attendant whenever possible, according to the policy document.
The policy also defines a sports medicine encounter as any evaluation, treatment, examination or rehabilitation session performed by an SJSU faculty or staff member.
“The university stated it further committed to ensure a culture of responsibility and accountability by conducting educational programming for sports medicine staff and student athletes and maintaining response protocols for reports of suspected “unprofessional or unsafe behavior,” according to the same document.
Kaur said the A.S. board is looking to collaborate on events that provide students with resources on intimate partner and domestic violence.
“This upcoming October, we are also looking at advocacy directives to focus on education and preventative measures when it comes to Title IX, so not just compliance,” Kaur said in a phone call.
Kaur said one of the A.S. board members’ goals this semester is to address any Title IX concerns so they’re “dedicated to events” that provide students with on-campus resources.
“My goal is that these issues just don't come to our campus [and] that there are no more cases [and we have a] safe campus for all community members [and] female [identifying] folks,” Kaur said. “I would love to see a bigger Gender Equity Center.”
The Gender Equity Center currently works with various campus organizations to produce programs and educational opportunities to the SJSU community, according to its webpage. The center offers sexual-health products, a lactation room and a meeting space for student groups.
It took the university about 12 years of receiving misconduct complaints about Shaw to take action, according to the Justice Department’s statement.
“Overall, SJSU has a consistent history of caring more about the image of the school than their students,” Rainey said.
The Justice Department will monitor implementation of its agreement with SJSU through the 2024-25 academic year including the financial relief requirement totaling $1.6 million and Title IX reform, according to its Tuesday statement.
Kaur said she’s glad the university cooperated with the Justice Department but hopes to see SJSU take more proactive measures in preventing future Title IX violations.
“The health and safety of our campus community is a top priority. We will continue to learn from the past so we hopefully never repeat it,” Kaur said.
