GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD SINCE 1920 thehoya.com
Georgetown University • Washington, D.C. Vol. 100, No. 9, © 2018
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2018
Artistic Accountability
In this week’s issue, join the conversation around whether to separate art from the artist.
EDITORIAL Bystanders must play a role in protecting Georgetown students from sexual assault.
NEW EXECUTIVE BOARD GUSA named 13 new members to its executive branch this week.
OPINION, A2
NEWS, A7
Men’s Group Files Graduate Students to Vote on Unionization Title IX Complaint Against University KATRINA SCHMIDT Hoya Staff Writer
ELIZABETH DOUGLAS
cent of undergraduates in both two- and four-year institutions are male. The Washington, D.C. The complaint, filed to the chapter of the National Co- Department of Education’s alition for Men, a nonprofit Office for Civil Rights on organization that advocates Oct. 3, lists 18 university-affor men’s rights, filed a filiated institutions through Title IX complaint alleging which, it claims, Georgethat Georgetown viotown Unilates Title versity disIX or that, criminates according against men to the comin its hirplaint, vioing practices late Title IX and by supthemselves. porting orGeorgeganizations town has that provide not yet been outreach to formally nowomen. tified of the “Georgecomplaint town Univerby the Ofsity is in viofice of Civil NATIONAL COALITION FOR MEN lation of Title Rights. If IX because the OCR it offers redeems the sources, funding, fellow- case a violation of Title IX, ships, and scholarships that the university will be notiare available to women only, fied, according to Campus even though men are a mi- Safety Magazine. nority both nationwide [42 Title IX protects individuals percent] and at Georgetown from discrimination based on University [44 percent],” ac- sex in education programs cording to the summary of that receive federal funding, the complaint. according to the Department According to the U.S. De- of Education website. partment of Education, nationwide in 2018, 43.56 perSee MEN’S RIGHTS, A6 Hoya Staff Writer
“The fact that these scholarships and programs are endorsed as ‘Women’s’ is sufficient, in and of itself, to infer disparate treatment.”
Georgetown University’s nearly 1,100 graduate student assistants are set to vote on whether or not to unionize, after a two-yearlong effort by the Georgetown Alliance of Graduate Employees for university recognition of a graduate teaching assistant labor union. The election, to be held between Nov. 5 and Nov. 8, is being moderated by the American Arbitration Association, a neutral third party. Eligible students will be able to vote at Lauinger Library, the Intercultural Center, Regents Hall or the Preclinical Science Building between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. each day of the election. The ballots are secret, and graduate students eligible to vote include doctoral, graduate or student research assistants; doctoral, graduate or student teaching assistants; and doctoral teaching associates. Graduate student assistants, as they are called collectively, must either currently be holding one of these positions or have held one within the past two semesters to participate in the vote. If GAGE wins the election, the organization will gain collective bargaining rights on stipend amounts, wage rates, benefits, hours and similar matters, according to the April 2 election agreement between the GAGE and the university. GAGE would not gain bargaining rights on academic issues like tuition rates or degree requirements. Graduate student workers are not currently represented by a union and are paid at varying rates. “We value our graduate students, who are an important part
GAGE
Georgetown University’s graduate students will vote on whether to unionize in an election held between Nov. 5 and Nov. 8, the culmination of a two-yearlong effort by the Georgetown Alliance of Graduate Employees. of our academic community,” Provost Robert Groves and Executive Vice President for Health Sciences Edward Healton wrote in an Oct. 22 universitywide email. “Georgetown is committed to continuing to enhance the resources provided
MPD Investigates Duke Ellington Teacher WALKER MILLER Special to The Hoya
The chair of the literacy and media department at Duke Ellington School of the Arts is being investigated by Washington, D.C. police after allegations of sexual assault against a minor were raised Oct. 14. The school placed the teacher on leave and the Metropolitan Police Department is conducting an investigation into the allegations. Ellington Principal Sandi Logan sent a letter Oct. 17 informing Ellington parents about the accusation of sexual misconduct by the staff member that allegedly occurred in 2013, according to The Washington Post. The accusation first materialized Oct. 14, when a former student emailed the Ellington administration, according to Kristen Metzger, a public affairs specialist for MPD. The student alleged that, in 2013, the department chair sexually assaulted a female student, who was at the time underage. “The Duke Ellington School officials then notified MPD’s Youth and Family Services division and this is currently under investigation,” Metzger wrote in an email to The Hoya. “At this time MPD does not have a name of the victim and cannot confirm the name of the suspect. MPD will look
FEATURED
JULIA ALVEY FOR THE HOYA
A teacher at Duke Ellington School of the Arts has been placed on leave during an investagation into sexual assault allegations. into all allegations and address this accordingly.” Logan referred inquiries about the accusations to D.C. Public Schools. DCPS Press Secretary Shayne Wells identified the suspect as the head of the literacy and media department at Ellington in an email to The Hoya. Wells emphasized that DCPS can play only a limited role in
the investigation because of the special status of Ellington in the school district. Duke Ellington School of the Arts, unlike the District’s other public high schools, is operated as a joint partnership between DCPS, The George Washington University, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the Ellington Fund, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit which helps raise
money for the school. “While Duke Ellington School of the Arts is part of D.C. Public Schools, it has a unique governance structure and its teachers are not represented by the union or considered city employees,” Wells said. “DCPS will support Duke Ellington as needed throughout the investigation.” The Oct. 14 sexual assault allegation against a staff member is not the first DCPS has seen this month. On Oct. 10, police in Montgomery County, Md., arrested Rudy A. Gonzalez, a DCPS music teacher at Shepherd Elementary School, on charges of second-degree rape, according to The Washington Post. The survivor alleged that she went to Gonzalez’s home for citizenship lessons, after which he served her drinks and she passed out. She was found unconscious the next morning in a Wendy’s parking lot. Gonzalez has been placed on leave, according to Wells, and was released on bail Oct. 12. DCPS has faced criticism for failing to inform parents of the reason behind Gonzalez’s absence in Shepherd Elementary Principal Jade Brawley’s initial letter, which was sent Oct. 8, according to WJLA. A second letter sent Oct. 16 notified parents of Gonzalez’s involvement in “an alleged incident” but did not provide details on the specific allegations.
to graduate students.” Douglas McRae, a graduate worker and fifth-year doctoral candidate in the department of history, said that the election will allow graduate students’ voices to be heard. “This election is important for
graduate workers because it is our chance to bring our collective voice to bear on our working conditions,” McRae wrote in an email to The Hoya. “We provide value to the See GAGE, A6
VARGAS ON MEDIA INFLUENCE
ASHLEY CHEN FOR THE HOYA
Jose Antonio Vargas spoke Thursday about the influence of the media on national perceptions of immigrants without documentation.
NEWS
OPINION
SPORTS
Change the Catholic Church The church’s culture must fundamentally change to solve its sexual abuse crisis, panelists said Wednesday. A7
Catching Up on Sleep Construction constantly disrupts the sleep of Darnall students. One resident demands compensation from Georgetown. A3
Big East Champions The Georgetown women’s soccer team clinched the Big East regular-season title with its win over Butler on Sunday. A12
NEWS Alumnus Kidnapped
OPINION Pushing Past the Pictures
SPORTS Historic Win
Mohammed Dewji (MSB ’98), a member of the MSB Board of Advisors, has returned home after being kidnapped. A5 Published Fridays
Meaningful study abroad experiences require students to engage further than a photo op. A3
The Georgetown football team defeated Lehigh last weekend for the first time since 1925. A12 Send story ideas and tips to news@thehoya.com