An independent review of the English department at Concordia University in Montreal has reported an “unhealthy” environment within the department.
According to the report, “the departmental culture and practices did not promote healthy relationships.”
In January 2018, English professors in Concordia faced sexual misconduct allegations by students, which prompted the university to launch a climate review of the department.
The review was one part of three measures the university took to address the allegations. Other efforts included an investigation into the complaints and a university-wide taskforce on sexual violence.
About 100 people chose to participate in the review which looked at “the overall culture and climate of the department.” The review also set forth recommendations for the university on ways to improve the program.
“We welcome the recommendations put forth in the Climate Review report. We will work with our Standing Committee on Sexual Misconduct and Sexual Violence and the Department of English to take the next steps in addressing the recommendations,” Concordia president Alan Shepard said in a statement.
Last month, the Concordia Association for Students in English (CASE) released a statement on their website, expressing their disappointment with the official complaint process at the university.
According to the statement, the Concordia University Part-Time Faculty Association (CUPFA), the union who represents two faculty members being investigated for misconduct allegations, held a panel on sexual misconduct, consent and campus environment, where human rights lawyer Julius Grey was invited to speak.
Grey is representing McGill University professor Ahmed Fekry Ibrahim, who is currently suing a student and faculty member for voicing their concerns that Ibrahim was behaving inappropriately towards students.
CASE said that they believe CUPFA is only trying to protect the reputation of the faculty over the safety of students.
“C.A.S.E. chooses to connect these two events because we recognize that our institution’s current system for representing survivors of sexual violence and preventing the abuse of students is broken.”
CASE’s statement was one example of concerns over sexual violence at Concordia preceding the review.
A variety of members of Concordia’s English program community—about 30 students, 17 faculty members, three staff members, and 57 alumni—participated in the review.
The process used three different approaches to collect the data from participants: individual interviews; an anonymous online survey sent to all students, faculty members, staff and alumni of the English department; and confidential phone or video conversations.
The review identified four issues: acts of sexual violence committed by faculty members, instances of favoritism and conflict of interest, mistrust towards the institution in handling complaints and perceived discrimination and hostility.
The review revealed that those who participated pinpointed only a small number of faculty members.
The report also found that the negative experiences reported on by current students are much lower than those of negative experiences reported on by alumni.
There were several recommendations put forward by the review: the presentation of guidelines for romantic or sexual relationships between instructors and students; a workshop with the Department of English faculty and staff to discuss the recommendations; and additional staff education and training with respect to reporting misconduct.
Overall, there were 13 recommendations set forward by the Climate Review for the university to implement.
