Dear Students,
I am writing about an incident that occurred at the beginning of the term outside one of our residential halls, when a group of students was verbally assaulted by another group in what was described as a racially motivated incident. TUPD was called to the scene and the students dispersed shortly thereafter. TUPD has finished and closed its investigation, and the Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO) is now in the process of conducting its own. Once that is completed, the Office of Community Standards will address all violations with the students involved in the verbal assault. I ask that you please respect the investigative processes. Due to privacy constraints, I cannot provide more details about this incident.
These actions, regardless of their motivation or intent, are reprehensible and violate the values and expectations of behavior of our community. Members of our community have been harmed and distressed, and there is repair work to be done by all of us. We are all responsible to each other, and this is a moment from which we should all learn.
To that point, I apologize that this notification was not sent earlier. We have not had a set mechanism for reporting these incidents to the community. From now on, I will report to you when an incident of this nature has occurred, even if I may be limited in the details that I know or can share.
I encourage you to reach out to me directly or my colleagues in the offices listed below if you witness or experience behavior that are contrary to our values and community standards. We will treat your information with confidentiality and strive to resolve the situation in partnership with you.
I understand also that hearing about this incident may cause its own distress, and I want to underscore the resources available to everyone in the community. DOSA, OEO, and DSDI are all here to support you. And as always, Counseling and Mental Health Service (CMHS) has open counseling appointments every day, and the Counselor-on-Call is available evening and weekends. We are always here to support you, and genuinely welcome you to reach out.
Toward love and understanding,
Camille Lizarríbar, JD, PhD
Dean of Students for AS&E
