Former board member sues university

Lynk Editor-in-Chief jessica.lynk@drake.edu @jessmlynk

A former Drake trustee is suing the university, alleging he was kicked off the board after he repeatedly complained about how Drake investigated a sexual assault allegation against his son.

Trustee Tom Rossley was removed from the board last July after serving 23 years. He sued in U.S. District Court on Feb. 17.

investigator, Mary Howell Sirna, the Title IX Coordinator at Iowa State University.

Drake Assistant Director of Campus Public Safety Tricia McKinney helped conduct the investigation.

The university then expelled Rossley’s son in spring 2016 for violating Drake’s student code of conduct.

Rossley alleges that Drake mishandled the investigation by overlooking his son’s accusation that he was sexually assaulted by the female student, earlier in the evening.

of his disabled son’s rights to school officials and the Board of Trustees. Instead of remedying the school’s numerous unlawful actions, they instead instituted an immediate attack on Mr. Rossley and effectively silenced and covered up his complaints, to the direct detriment of his family, career, and Drake University’s students.”

Rossley’s lawsuit says his son has ADHD, language-based learning disabilities and anxiety.

Drake’s director of public relations, Jarad Bernstein, issued a statement on behalf of the university:

The search is on for the new Dean of Students. The search committee has selected three finalists. All three have come to speak to students, faculty and staff throughout the past week.

Dr. Khalilah T. Doss, Dr. Brandon Barile-Swain and Dr. Jerry Parker are the three finalists up for the position.

Doss presented on Feb. 24, Barile-Swain presented on Feb. 28 and Parker presented Tuesday.

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Rossley’s son, a former Drake student, was accused by a female Drake student of sexual assault in October 2015. The university investigated the complaint, as required by Title IX.

Title IX is a federal law that says that students “are protected from sex-based discrimination, harassment, or violence, whether it occurs on or off campus,” according to Drake’s Title IX website. This law requires Drake to respond to and restrain sexual harassment or violence.

Because Rossley’s son was the son of a board member, Drake brought in an outside

He also alleges that the university didn’t accommodate his son’s disabilities throughout the investigation.

“While engaging in a biased and unlawful Title IX investigation of Mr. Rossley’s disabled son, the officials at Drake University purposefully ignored and failed to investigate the student’s numerous pleas for help after he was sexually assaulted by a female student,” said Andrew Miltenberg, Rossley’s lawyer who is from New York, in an email.

“My client made numerous efforts to address the heinous violations

The investigators, Sirna and McKinney, discriminated against him by not giving him “any of the necessary and legally mandated accommodations” for his disabilities, the lawsuit says.

Rossley said he informed Acting Dean of Students Jerry Parker of his son’s disabilities in December 2015, but Parker seemed “disinterested,” according to the lawsuit.

In February 2016, the university investigation concluded that Rossley’s son committed misconduct, and he was expelled from Drake.

According to the lawsuit, Rossley’s son appealed the decision, but was not successful.

“Drake University takes seriously its commitment to provide a safe and productive educational environment for all of its students. This case is no exception. After an initial review of the complaint filed by former trustee Tom Rossley, Sr., the University disagrees with the plaintiff’s depictions of the alleged actions of the parties involved. There are clear differences of opinion about how this situation evolved, and we look forward to presenting a vigorous defense in court. In recognition of the University’s obligations under federal law and out of respect for the privacy of those individuals involved, no further comment will be offered.”

In the fall of 2015, a female student alleged that she had been sexually assaulted by Rossley’s son, who was identified in the lawsuit as a member of the Class of 2016. Drake’s Title IX investigation led to the expulsion of Rossley’s son.