Fresno State sexual harassment task force issues final report, recommendations

The Title IX Task Force charged with assessing the way Fresno State handles sexual harassment complaints after the university was rocked last year by allegations against a former vice president released its full report on Tuesday, with few weighty recommendations.

The task force, led by dean of undergraduate studies Bernadette Muscat, focused on campus culture, an increased trust and transparency in the reporting process and policies to address and provide resolutions to unprofessional conduct on campus. Included among its recommendations:

• Enhanced training for academic deans and department chairs.
• A marketing campaign to raise campus awareness and drive cultural change.

• Provide a dashboard for complainants and respondents to have immediate access to case status updates, and an increased efficiency and timeliness of intake and initial assessment processes.

• A centralized Title IX and Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation (DHR) office.
• Upgrading a records management system to allow for enhanced documentation, data tracking, and data reporting.
• The addition of a minimum of three positions including an employee relations manager, deputy Title IX coordinator and a program coordinator.

The report was not well received in all corners of a campus the task force acknowledged was left reeling from “the pain of the abuse and trauma” caused by allegations against former vice president of student affairs Frank Lamas, who retired in 2020 with a $260,000 settlement and letter of recommendation from former university president and California State University chancellor Joseph I. Castro.

“Typical (expletive),” said one campus source, after reading the report.

In implementing recommendations in the 30-page report, the task force recognized the scope of that undertaking and the time involved and also expressed concerns that someone already on campus and presumably while sexual harassment allegations were made against Lamas over a period of years “may have difficulty with engendering the trust and buy-in needed for the enormity of this endeavor.”

A report commissioned by the CSU and released last September found that the university took some action to explore and address each of the reports, but while some responses substantially complied with executive order 1096, the CSU policy prohibiting discrimination and sexual harassment, others did not. It also found deficiencies in the university’s notice and record keeping in its responses to allegations that started in 2014 and continued to 2019, and that best practices were not always followed.

The task force recommended that an outside consultant as a change agent with a background in project management, assessment and organizational change leadership will be needed.

University president Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval, who initiated the task force, pledged in a statement to the campus community that there will be ongoing assessment within Title IX, DHR offices and survivor advocacy.

The university will hire for three new positions in the Title IX and DHR departments, in addition to a deputy Title IX coordinator, deputy DHR coordinator, and a second survivor advocate hired last fall.

It also will partner with an external evaluator to ensure accountability and transparency as it continues to assess program needs and implement the recommendations from both the task force and a system-wide assessment of the CSU system being completed by the law firm Cozen O’Connor.