San Jose State faculty leaders criticize athletics officials for handling of sex abuse probe
SAN JOSE — San Jose State faculty representatives publicly criticized the school and its athletic department Monday for the handling of sexual abuse allegations made by women athletes beginning in 2009, calling for the university’s leadership to protect the campus community from retaliation when reporting misconduct.
The Academic Senate adopted a five-paragraph resolution expressing concern about the school’s athletic administration in its final meeting of the academic year. The resolution, which passed 40-0 with two abstentions, states that media reports have triggered concern “that there is a culture of retaliation, harassment, and bullying” in the athletics department run by Marie Tuite.
Student President Zobeida Delagdillo, a member of the Senate, called for transparency during the debate that preceded the vote.
“To say we are transformative when things like this are going on is embarrassing and disgusting,” she said, hinting at a recent Money Magazine study that named SJSU the nation’s most transformative college, a title the school has latched onto.
San Jose State President Mary Papazian made her plea against the resolution during her regularly scheduled statement to the senators. She asked senators to withhold judgment until after an external Title IX investigation was complete. The investigation is looking into how former athletic trainer Scott Shaw was able to keep working with women athletes a decade after women swimmers leveled allegations of sexual abuse.
“I trust that we all recognize that adopting a Senate resolution prior to the conclusion of a fair process is at odds with the core values of the academy,” she said.
Papazian repeated what she has said in the past month about the situation, reassuring the body that the administration takes the allegations of retaliation very seriously.
“You have the promise that we will hold ourselves accountable, make necessary changes and continue to share our progress with the community,” she said. “Accountability, action and transparency are critical to rebuilding trust.”
A school spokesman did not acknowledge questions from the Bay Area News Group seeking comments from Papazian and Tuite.
The Academic Senate resolution calls for Papazian and her staff to implement measures to promote a climate to support anyone who reports abuse. Karthika Sasikumar, an associate professor of political science, said she and professors Julia Curry and Brandon White wrote the resolution to “give a voice to concerns that we have heard from our constituents. It is not an attempt to pre-judge anyone.”
Political science professor Kenneth Peter told his fellow senators that the resolution is not meant as punishment in the form of censorship or calling for resignations. But Peter said he was not willing to wait for the results of the current external investigation underway.
“We need to encourage and not discourage whistleblowers,” Peter said. “In the meantime, we cannot tolerate a climate of fear on the part of those who might wish to report abuse or malfeasance.”
Anoop Kaur, the Associated Students’ director of Academic Affairs, called for university officials to apologize to swim coach Sage Hopkins, who has filed a whistleblower retaliation suit in Santa Clara County. Hopkins listened in on the meeting, which was conducted over video call.
The issue dates to 2009 when 17 women swimmers complained about improper touching by Shaw, who was promoted to director of sports medicine in 2008 and resigned last year after the allegations were first made public by USA Today.
A school investigation conducted by the then-equal opportunity manager had concluded in 2010 that the uncomfortable touching was a result of Shaw’s use of “pressure point therapy,” which, it said, was a “bona fide means of treating muscle injury.”
Shaw has not been arrested or charged with a crime. In a brief interview with the Bay Area News Group he said there was “more to the story,” but declined to provide details.
The allegations have attracted the attention of the FBI and attorneys from the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. It also spurred notice of legal action from 10 women athletes and wrongful termination lawsuits from former athletic department employees caught up in the case.
Hopkins continued to raise concerns as the athletic administration changed personnel, according to his suit. After he discovered Shaw was still treating some of the swimmers, Hopkins sent a 300-page dossier on the case to officials at the National Collegiate Athletic Association and Mountain West conference to which San Jose State is a member school. The action led Papazian to reopen the case in 2019.
Results of the second investigation announced last month reversed the findings of the original inquiry, declaring investigators found no medical value in Shaw’s method of treatments that included massaging women’s breasts and under their underwear near their genitals. Investigators also said it found two more victims after 2017 who were current students.
The Bay Area News Group reported last week about a third victim who said Shaw started treating her in 2014 and continued until she graduated in 2019.
Last month, the San Jose State faculty union asked that Tuite and other executives named in the lawsuits be suspended in a letter to California State University Chancellor Joseph I. Castro.
The Academic Senate’s resolution will be sent to various bodies of the California State University system including the Board of Trustees, Castro and presidents of the 23 state schools.