Monday, August 18, 2014

Oklahoma colleges handling misbehaving student athletes

Not all of these cases are Title IX specific, but given the cover-ups and repeat offenses that happen when colleges look the other way (see the last incident below) or lightly punish student athletes who commit assault, I felt this update is relevant.
The athletic and college administrators at the University of Oklahoma have announced the suspension of first-year Joe Mixon, a "highly-touted" recruit. Mixon was charged with a misdemeanor after punching a woman in a restaurant, breaking four bones in her face and leaving her unconscious. And OU has decided to suspend him for the season. He had been banned from team activities since right after the incident.
In the wake of the wrist-slapping the NFL gives players who commit assault, it might seem that OU is taking a hard line in this case. But as Deadspin writer Diana Moskovitz notes, this is the same team advocating for the eligibility of Dorial Green-Beckham, former Missouri football player who was dismissed after breaking into his girlfriend's apartment and assaulting someone at that residence. The girlfriend did not press charges because she feared backlash from the Missouri football community. (She must have learned well from FSU.)
OU should tread cautiously given that elsewhere in Oklahoma there is a Title IX issue....
University of Tulsa is facing a Title IX lawsuit from a female student who alleges the university did not do enough in addressing the history of sexual assault allegations by basketball player, Patrick Swilling, Jr. The lawsuit states that the university knew of an incident at Swilling's former school, the College of Southern Idaho and ESPN commentator said it is "shocking that the coach [at Southern Idaho] would pass the buck" on this. This is NOT AT ALL shocking. This underground passing of suspect student athletes happens all the time. What is more shocking--to me--is that the Southern Idaho admitted it handled things poorly. The former president said he felt the school's duty to investigate was mitigated by the fact that local law enforcement conducted an investigation.
Back in Tulsa, though, Swilling was cleared by a university investigation into the sexual assault (there was also a prior sexual assault allegation to campus security by a student who has graduated and does not want to pursue the issue--which was not pursued by the university). This has seemingly cleared Swilling for athletic participation and he is in fact trying to get on the football team and the coach wants him. How this lawsuit (and an Outside the Lines investigation into sexual assault) affects his chances remains up in the air.