MOSCOW, Idaho—The University of Idaho placed its athletic director on administrative leave Tuesday.
University of Idaho officials said Athletic Director Rob Spear was put on administrative leave for 60 days while investigators and university leadership work to better understand process failures in reporting sexual assault complaints in 2012 and 2013, what has been done since then, and what should be done in the future.
“This is a challenging day,” said President Chuck Staben in a press release. “But understanding how we’ve handled situations in the past and how we can improve is essential. We have a responsibility to provide our students, and our student-athletes, with the best college experience and the most support possible. We are committed to meeting these expectations.”
ASUI Student Vice President Catherine Yenne said she is glad to see some of the student body's concerns finally being addressed.
"I'm glad to see the university is taking this seriously but I also believe it needs to go one step further. But we are proud to help enact change," Yenne said.
She said President Staben has been a great ally and supporter os ASUI and he is often the only on who replies to their resolutions.
"I think people are really excited to see that someone is finally taking a firm stance against sexual assault and misconduct reporting, and especially issues with reporting. This is an issue that has plagued our University multiple times and this latest incident that was revealed was the straw that broke the camel's back. So people are excited to see that something is finally happening," she said.
ASUI is voting Wednesday at 7:00 p.m. to send a formal letter to the University about what they want as a student organization. Rob Spear was supposed to meet with ASUI before the meeting, now that he is on leave, Yenne does not think that will happen.
U of I authorities said that during the review period, the university will take several actions to address the importance of safety, improved responsiveness and accountability.
Those actions included continuing an internal review and engaging an external investigator regarding behaviors of concern.
Also engaging an external consultant to help leadership better understand what has happened and bolster the training and support of sexual assault prevention, reporting and response throughout the university, with the goal of creating and maintaining an inclusive community where students feel supported for as long as they are part of the local community.
It also included hiring additional help to address the workload in the university’s Office of Civil Rights and Investigations. Another position may be hired in the coming months. In the interim, this office will receive any additional support it needs.
U of I officials said during the interim, associate athletic director, Pete Isakson, will serve as acting athletic director for day-to-day operations. Vice president for finance and administration, Brian Foisy, will work with the athletics business office to manage the finance functions of the department.
Staben said the goal was to make sure there was a better understanding about this situation and how U of I could both learn from our mistakes and become a leader in responsiveness and transparency.