SAST
Supports Petition For Goldsmiths Resignation
To
the Editors:
The
Sexual Assault Support Team is writing to voice a vote of no
confidence in Dean of Students Peter Goldsmith. Generally,
we feel that Dean Goldsmiths decisions over the past year,
as well as the manner in which he makes them, demonstrate a lack
of the integrity, good intentions and competence needed to provide
adequate services as Dean of Students.
When Dean Goldsmith was first hired, he expressed interest and willingness
to engage with students and behaved respectfully during his interactions
with SAST. Unfortunately, his interactions with SAST members as
well as survivors themselves became increasingly strained and problematic.
Rather than respect SASTs organizational policies, Dean Goldsmith
has made a regular practice of privately contacting individual students,
often at home, asking for representative statements about SAST.
He continued this behavior even after SAST made clear to him that
this is inappropriate because (1) it lessens our ability to hold
him to his word, or even know when he is and isnt speaking
in his professional capacity, and (2) it places an undue burden
on SASTs collective structure and hinders our decision-making
process.
From meetings we have had with Dean Goldsmith, it is SASTs
impression that the has refused to communicate with us properly
because of his feelings toward individual members of the organization.
Additionally, after SAST confronted the administration regarding
several aspects of sexual offense policy and protocol last semester
(Fall 2001), Dean Goldsmith was unwilling to support the inclusion
of any SAST member on President Dyes taskforce on Sexual Ethics,
despite SASTs 12-year history of doing sexual assault prevention
and education at Oberlin College. As a result of this unprofessional
and punitive conduct, many of SASTs possible contributions
as experienced peer educators, including ready-made curricula, resources
throughout Ohio, materials from conferences and mailing lists, and
other valuable information were lost or had to be re-created by
this semesters task force, which also has yet to issue any
specific new policies or programs for next year.
Over the last two years, people who have been in contact with SAST
about incidences of sexual violence at Oberlin report that their
interactions with Dean Goldsmith have had a negative impact on their
situation as a whole. Dean Goldsmiths behaviors towards students
have been unproductive and hurtful and include dismissive and rude
comments, refusal to take remedial safety measures when students
feel threatened and inflexibility regarding their personal and academic
needs. As an organization concerned with supporting survivors of
sexual violence, we are very concerned that the Dean of Students
is not someone with whom the students feel safe and comfortable
discussing issues of sex, violence or safety.
Dean Goldsmiths unwillingness to help individual students
in need is very disturbing; more disturbing, however, are the ways
in which he has fundamentally compromised the safety of every student
on this campus through his support for institutional decisions regarding
hiring, firing and the creation of positions. The most recent of
these decisions involves the elimination of the Community Coordinator
intern positions. The Community Coordinators in the Multicultural
Resource Center are essential to the personal and academic well-being
of hundreds of students at Oberlin.
The coordinators provide invaluable leadership for student leaders
and activists at Oberlin, providing contacts, workshops, financial
support and constructive feedback. Although budget issues were given
as the reason for this dismissal, and discussions had occurred long
before the decision was announced, no students were given the chance
to have input in this decision; in fact, Rachel Beverly, the director
of the MRC, was not even informed that such substantial changes
to her staff were being considered. Dean Goldsmiths treatment
of his colleagues and the students he is supposed to serve has been
wholly inappropriate and unjustifiable.
The proposal to eliminate the MRCs community coordinators
has not been Dean Goldsmiths first attempt to eliminate important
resources this year. Over Winter Term, Dean Goldsmith eliminated
the two positions for Sexual Assault Education and Prevention Interns.
This decision came after a semester in which there were four reports
of sexual assault, at least one report of domestic violence and
hundreds of students received obscene and harassing phone calls.
The decision was made without the input of students or the interns
themselves and adequate explanation was never given. In an equally
unexplained conflict over space allocation for the Womens
Resource Center, administrative decisions regarding this important
campus office were only vaguely and inadequately communicated to
students.
As Dean of Students, Peter Goldsmith is one of the only administrators
whose job is to understand and advocate for the needs and demands
of students. Not only has Dean Goldsmith not done this, he has failed
to foster an atmosphere in which students feel that their concerns
are even being heard, let alone given any real consideration in
decision-making processes. Many students do not trust him, doubt
his sincerity and good intentions, and are disappointed in the decisions
he has made in his position as Dean. Due to this, the Sexual Assault
Support Team calls on Dean Goldsmith to resign immediately, or be
asked to leave by President Dye.
Jessie Carr
College first-year
Annie Gebhardt
College junior
Lissah Lorberbaum
College sophomore
SAST
Members
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