UPDATED: Concordia Professors Accused of Misconduct Removed From Classes

Investigation is Being Conducted by a Third Party, Books Removed from Display

NewsKelsey Litwin — Published January 12, 2018 | Updated January 16, 2018 at 4:05pm

This article has been updated.

This is the first statement published by the association since news broke Monday that Concordia would be investigating long-standing claims of sexual misconduct in its Creative Writing program.

During a meeting on Thursday, English Department Chair Andre Furlani confirmed that the professors in question were being reassigned, explained Debby Gemme, president of CASE, via email. No names were released, however.

At the same meeting, Gemme said that university administration also announced that a third party will be conducting the investigation, which Concordia spokesperson Mary-Jo Barr later confirmed.

Gemme continued that a student representative who attended the meeting requested that books written by the faculty members in question be removed from the display on the sixth floor of the Webster Library.

“After the meeting, we noticed while walking past the display window that the books written by those professors were no longer there,” Gemme wrote.

Concordia President Alan Shepard previously refused to comment on whether the professors, whose names have been circulating widely on social media, were still teaching courses at the university. He explained that due to confidentiality reasons, the university is not at liberty to disclose details of the investigation.

At a press conference on Wednesday , Shepard said, “I feel confident that the environment that we have in our university and departments is safe.”

In the statement, CASE also demands that the university “be transparent about the third conducting the investigation.”

The association expressed concern about students turning to other faculty members with their experiences. “We urge students to keep in mind that faculty members are not equipped to adequately assist survivors,” they wrote.