The Baylor sexual assault scandal has seemingly gotten worse and worse for the Bears everyday. The school has gone back and forth on whether or not to fire those involved and as a result, the program has taken a big hit.
The biggest hit, however, might have just come – and it came directly from the Big 12.
Interim Baylor President David Garland has stated he doesn’t think it makes sense to release the 13 page Pepper Hamilton summary of the scandal because it will re-traumatize the victims. The media and fans of other programs have disagreed with that belief, and now the Big 12 is jumping into that argument too.
On Wednesday, the Big 12 Conference released the following statement criticizing Baylor’s approach to the situation:
The Big 12 Board of Directors is gravely and deeply concerned by media reports about activities involving the athletics program at Baylor University. On May 24, 2016, the Big 12 Board requested a full accounting of the circumstances surrounding the sexual assaults at the University. At this time the Board is only privy to information that has been made available to the public.
Today, Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby sent a letter to Baylor University Interim President David Garland once again requesting all documents associated with the investigations of sexual assaults at Baylor. This request is for written materials as well as any information that has been conveyed orally to University leadership or to its Board of Regents including, but not limited to, the unedited written or verbal information from Pepper Hamilton, omitting only the names of any involved students. Internal documents pertinent to the investigation have also been requested.
Because many of the incidents at Baylor reportedly involve student-athletes, the Conference is appropriately concerned with discovery of the facts. The Big 12 is primarily configured to facilitate fair competition among its members and compliance to the rules of both the Conference and NCAA. To that end, full disclosure is vital to assess the impact on the Big 12.
Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby also added onto the conference’s statement:
“All of our member universities consider student safety and security to be paramount among institutional responsibilities. The Big 12 Board of Directors, each member of the Conference and its student-athletes want to convey that our thoughts, concerns and sympathies are with the Baylor survivors and their families.”
Art Briles, the team’s head coach throughout the scandal, was fired and then reportedly had a chance to come back, but is still fired. Ken Starr, the school president throughout the scandalp is gone as well. Ian McCaw, the athletic director during the scandal, recently resigned.
While the three big leaders at the university involved in the scandal are gone, it looks like the Big 12 is making sure the scandal itself isn’t until everything is uncovered.
