The Battalion - February 4, 2021

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4 | SERVING TEXAS A&M SINCE 1893 | © 2021 STUDENT MEDIA

“... he would do and say these things with intent to get me more comfortable with him.”

“He was bragging about it.”

“He was reported to the chairs two times and those chairs did nothing.”

“I thought I could trust him.”

A TRADITION, TARNISHED

“It appears as though there was a shortcoming ...”

“... while traditions are important, sometimes traditions need change.”

“... a concern that existed in 2017 was able to perpetuate itself for many years.”

“After Fish Camp, he sexually assaulted her.”

“Who knows how many other girls this happened to?”

Failures in reporting process, unbalanced power dynamics create culture of sexual assault, harassment in Fish Camp

By Myranda Campanella @MCampanella_ Editor’s note: The Battalion does not publish the names or identifying information of rape and sexual assault victims.

The names of victims and assailants in this article have been altered or removed to protect the subjects’ identities.

Power dynamics, grooming, hookups

The unequal power dynamic that Fish Camp creates between counselors and incoming freshmen makes it easy for someone who has not learned healthy boundaries to assert predatory behaviors, Carroll Spitznagle said.

“Whenever you have someone that’s in a position of power like that — especially with students that come from all over the world Content warning: This article discusses with different cultures and backgrounds — it sexual violence and predatory behavior. becomes, unfortunately, a way for survivors to be preyed upon,” Carroll Spitznagle said.

“I thought he was someone I could trust.”

Ashley said when she met her D.G. dad on the first day of Fish Camp, she thought he Journalism junior, “Ashley,” said this of the was nice and trustworthy. Once classes began, male counselor in her 2018 Fish Camp Dis- Ashley said her D.G. dad remained in contact cussion Group, who was supposed to “offer with her and often told her to call him if she advice about classes, College Station and any- ever needed a ride from Northgate, which he thing else you need as you begin your jour- insisted was commonplace between D.G. parney as an Aggie,” according to Fish Camp’s ents and their freshmen. website.

On the night of Dec. 1, 2018, Ashley called Ashley’s D.G. dad sexually assaulted her her D.G. dad for a ride home from Northgate, four months into her freshman year at Texas but when he picked her up, he locked Ashley A&M — the unwanted campus welcome that inside his car and tried to force her to kiss she said stole her joy about the school. him and perform oral sex. Afterward, he drove Boldly stated on the front page of its web- them to his apartment in Park West instead of site, Fish Camp, founded in 1954, is “A to her house, as she had asked, and attempted freshman’s first tradition” at A&M. Howev- to rape her. er, sexual assault and harassment have woven In hindsight, Ashley said she realized there their way in as a hidden part of the tradition had been red flags, like how he as current students — D.G. would ask the freshman girls if “moms” and “dads” — are COMMON TERMS: they had boyfriends and when placed in positions of power he saved his contact name in over incoming freshmen. The Fish Camp - Texas A&M’s Ashley’s phone with a smiley result is an established culture freshman orientation program face. Ashley said she now sees of hookups, grooming and these subtle actions as her D.G. sexual assault and harassment D.G. - discussion group dad grooming her because he among counselors that extends was ultimately able to build well beyond the four-day sum- D.G. dad - male discussion trust and put her in situations mer retreat held two hours group leader that would have otherwise away from College Station. In been weird. addition, a failure to adhere to D.G. mom - female “I was a freshman. I was proper protocols — in which discussion group leader young, you know? I was comclaims of abuse and harassment ing into this camp as brand against counselors are passed new; I hadn’t been fully educated on the conalong to director staff and faculty advisors — cepts of grooming and sexual assault, so I nevhas created a climate that protects abusers from er thought it was weird,” Ashley said. “Lookrepercussions and subjects freshmen to pred- ing back now, he would do these things and atory behavior. say these things with intent to get me more Lauren Carroll Spitznagle, executive di- comfortable with him.” rector of the Brazos Valley Sexual Assault After confiding in other members of her Resource Center, said it is “common knowl- D.G. following the assault, Ashley said she was edge” among her peers that students have told her counselor had also assaulted his Fish been assaulted by Fish Camp staff.

Camp partner and another freshman in their

D.G. freshmen] … and also to make friends,” Grace “His D.G. partner was very uncomfortable said. “He was bragging about it.” with him from the start. [She] asked to get a Muñoz said Fish Camp has a strict no-datnew partner, and they told her no,” Ashley ing policy, and counselors are encouraged to said. “The organization told her no, and she “keep it PG” with the freshmen and other had to stay with him. counselors during camp until continuity ends.

“After Fish Camp, he sexually assaulted “Counselors are told time and time again her.” that their role is to serve freshmen, it’s to be Additionally, Ashley said she was told by a resource and to be a mentor,” Muñoz said. her D.G. mom that her assaulter was also reDespite these policies and constant remindported to chairs for sexually assaulting fresh- ers about Fish Camp’s main missions, Grace men in 2017 and 2019. Because of those said she has discovered it’s really common for chairs’ failure to report up to the director staff, students to pursue leadership roles within the as is protocol, he was able to re-apply to be organization for the wrong reasons and to a counselor again and again. Ashley said he overlook its dating policies. ultimately graduated from A&M in May 2020 with no consequences.

“He was reported to chairs two times, and Reporting sexual assault those chairs did nothing,” Ashley said. “And on A&M’s campus because those chairs did nothing [in 2017], I was sexually assaulted.”

Denise Crisafi, Ph.D., a Health Promotion Ashley’s D.G. dad denied the allegations coordinator within the Offices of the Dean against him in a comment to of Student Life, said A&M The Battalion and declined to defines sexual harassment in FACULTY ADVISORS comment further.

University Rule 24.4.2 in acEven though Ashley recordance with federal law as ported her assault to Title IX “any type of unwelcome sexuDIRECTOR STAFF two years later, Fish Camp’s al advance” made by students, current Head Director Eric faculty, staff or campus visitors.

Muñoz, Class of 2021, said it This includes sexual favors as CAMP CHAIRS is not common for victims of well as verbal and non-verbal Fish Camp-related sexual ascommunicative conduct of a saults to report their offenders. sexual nature that is “severe, CAMP COUNSELORS However, he said if someone persistent or pervasive enough told him assault is common to [prevent access to] an educawithin the organization, he tional, living learning environwould be “very saddened, but INCOMING FRESHMEN ment,” Crisafi said.

I also would not be as surprised Separately, sexual assault is as others.” definitively three different acts, Crisafi said: In addition to sexual assault, Fish Camp is rape, fondling and incest. She said there is no also a common place for counselors to meet scale for these acts in terms of importance, so dating or hookup partners, either among no one’s trauma is invalid. other counselors or, sometimes, even the “I think it’s really important for our campus freshmen, as was the case with now-junior community to understand that a lot of times, “Grace.” our initial reaction is to think of [sexual asGrace said she began hooking up with her sault] as rape,” Crisafi said. “And that’s true, D.G. dad within the first month of classes her and it’s incredibly valid. But it also includes freshman year, which Muñoz said is against other things that can happen in connection Fish Camp policy — counselors cannot be with it … or without the definition or action romantically involved with any freshmen un- of rape being present.” til their continuity program and membership Crisafi said national statistics show the risk ends in October each year. However, this pol- of sexual assault goes up within the first six to icy is not listed in Fish Camp’s Constitution eight weeks of the fall semester, particularly or by-laws. among freshmen.

Grace said she quickly figured out her “Usually the risk of experiencing sexual viD.G. dad had ulterior motives for being a Fish olence and or alcohol poisoning and Camp counselor from the start.

“He told me he did it to [hook up with FISH CAMP ON PG. 2

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FISH CAMP CONTINUED intoxication goes up because you have 17[and] 18-year-old young people with a newfound independence,” Crisafi said.

University Rule 24.1.6 defines consent as “clear, voluntary and positive verbal or non-verbal communication that all participants have agreed to the activity.” Crisafi said someone must be of conscious and sound mind in order to make a decision to engage in sexual intercourse. Therefore, individuals cannot give consent if they are intoxicated, sleeping or passed out, or if they have an intellectual, emotional or physical disability that prevents them from volunteering agreement.

Assistant Vice President of Compliance and Title IX officer Jennifer Smith said if a campus member is found to have violated these school rules after an investigation is completed through the Title IX office, then they will be disciplined by the university, which could include probation, suspension or expulsion. The report is not sent to the police unless the accuser chooses to open a criminal investigation.

“We try to give as much control as possible to the victim,” Smith said. “If the victim doesn’t want to report to the police, then they don’t have to. It’s totally up to the victim.”

However, Smith said proceeding with a formal investigation with Title IX requires obtaining accounts from both parties as well as witnesses, writing up a report and holding a hearing with a neutral hearing officer before a final decision is made. Due to federal Title IX regulations, A&M’s Title IX office cannot offer anonymity to a campus member who chooses to report an offense, as the office is legally obligated to disclose the victim’s name to the offender if they are accused, Smith said.

A failure to serve freshmen Muñoz said Fish Camp chairs are obligated to report incidents of sexual assault to the organization’s advisors and support staff. If a counselor is reported to have assaulted a freshman or other staff member, he said the camp chairs would meet with the counselor and accuser in a small group first, and then possibly report up to the organization’s advisors.

“Chairs are in the first line of response,” Muñoz said. “They’re the front line, and they are responsible to relay that information back to director staff and the advisors.”

However, as in Ashley’s case, the chairs do not always follow this protocol. The chairs — students themselves — are relied upon to enforce the rules, echoing a similar situation in

A&M’s past that, too, brought disaster after a lack of oversight by anyone above the student leader role: The 1999 Bonfire Collapse.

During the U.S. Fire Administration’s investigation of Bonfire’s collapse, it was discovered that “the physical failure and causal factors were driven by an organizational failure” on both the students’ and university officials’ parts. And “since [Bonfire was] a student function, university officials rely upon the students to enforce the rules.” This description accurately depicts Fish Camp’s current status where camp chairs do not pass sexual assault allegations up to executive or faculty advisor levels, allowing predatory D.G. parents to continue in leadership roles until they graduate.

Muñoz himself is an undergraduate student, and the only non-student leaders involved in Fish Camp are two advisors from the Division of Student Affairs, Bradley Burroughs and Andrew Carruth. Burroughs and Carruth declined multiple requests for comment from The Battalion.

determine if that individual would be able to continue in their role with Fish Camp that year and future years.”

While Muñoz confirmed cases have been swept under the rug in the past, as current head director, he said he intends to ensure that all Fish Camp chairs and counselors are well-equipped to prevent and report incidents of sexual assault and harrassment moving forward. To achieve this, Muñoz said he is trying to certify all chairs through A&M’s Green Dot Bystander Intervention program for the upcoming 2021 camp sessions. This training is not yet mandatory, though it has been in previous years, Muñoz said.

Fish Camp’s response The lack of anonymity from A&M’s Title IX office is why Ashley did not go through with a formal investigation against her D.G. dad, she said. Instead, according to emails obtained by The Battalion, Ashley reached out to the Fish Camp director staff on Oct. 1, 2020 to share her story and ask how they would work to prevent future assaults from happening within their organization.

“Where I feel Fish Camp failed myself and the other girls sexually harassed/assaulted is from the lack of action taken by your leadership staff,” Ashley’s email reads. “Had he been removed as a counselor after he was first reported to camp chairs in 2017, my D.G. mom and I never would have been sexually assaulted and my D.G. sister never would have been cyber sexually harassed. In addition, because he was a three-year counselor, who knows how many other girls this happened to?”

Former Head Director Ryan Brown, Class of 2020, responded to Ashley’s email with an apology and a recognition of the organization’s failure.

“It appears as though there was a shortcoming, these protocols were not followed by chairpersons, and Director Staff was never notified,” Brown said in the email. “Thus, a concern that existed in 2017 was able to perpetuate itself for multiple years. Had this individual’s behavior been reported as individuals in Fish Camp are trained, it would have been reported to the Title IX office and Offices of the Dean of Student Life by Fish Camp to

via fishcamp.tamu.edu

Fish Camp is Texas A&M’s four-day orientation program where incoming freshmen are paired with A&M upperclassmen who teach them about traditions and life as an Aggie.

Crisafi said Health Promotion currently provides the same sexual assault training for Fish Camp counselors and freshmen, which focuses on teaching the four steps of trauma-informed care: Practice active listening, respect a survivor’s independence, help them get to safety and share resources available on campus. Health Promotion gives this information to freshmen at Fish Camp during a 25-minute presentation in each camp room, Crisafi said, while counselors receive an hour and a half extended version of this training on bystander intervention before camp.

“Those [counselor training] rooms are very large, obviously, so sometimes it can be a lot to manage,” Crisafi said. “We try to equip them with the tools to be able to respond to [sexual violence] in a way that’s going to be trauma-informed and meaningful. So, feeling comfortable and empowered to call out that behavior and say, ‘This doesn’t fit the mission of our organization, this isn’t what we’re

about.’”

However, Crisafi said another training resource Health Promotion offers that could be beneficial to Fish Camp counselors is the STAND Up Workshops. These are typically in-person, hands-on workshops providing “information about sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence and stalking; social perspectives; the impacts of trauma on the brain; listening techniques; tools for mandated reporters; and campus and community resources,” according to its website. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Crisafi said the office has been offering the workshops through live Zoom sessions.

These workshops are not currently required for any Fish Camp staff, though Crisafi said she believes they could be in the future.

Carroll Spitznagle said she wishes the university would allow the Sexual Assault Resource Center, or SARC, to do on-campus trainings for Fish Camp staff and other leaders on campus.

“I would love for [Fish Camp’s director staff] to allow us to come in and do training,” Carroll Spitznagle said. “We offer training on consent, healthy relationships [and] human trafficking, both in Spanish and English.”

According to SARC’s website, the center also “provides information on the definition of sexual harassment, the applicable laws in Texas and an overview of prevention methods.”

Ashley said despite her unwanted and disappointing welcome to A&M, she still believes Fish Camp is an important organization that can do good. However, she hopes for big changes within the organization to stop it from perpetuating a culture where hookups and harassment or assault are normalized.

“I personally love A&M’s traditions, and I think they are slowly starting to change over time... But I think it does show that while traditions are important, sometimes traditions need change,” Ashley said. “That was my welcome to A&M. That happened to me, and it stole my joy about A&M.” Myranda Campanella is an international studies junior and managing editor for The Battalion.

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CHRISTIAN FACULTY NETWORK

We are a group of professors, instructors, lecturers, and administrators united by our common experience that Jesus Christ provides intellectual and spiritually satisfying answers to life’s most important questions. We are available to students, faculty, and staff who might like to discuss such questions with us. For more information about the Christian Faculty Network and its activities, please visit our website: http://cfn.tamu.edu Chris Carson 12th Man Foundation Courtesy of the Texas A&M Department of Multicultural Services.

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Texas A&M kicked off Black History Month on Feb. 1 and will provide students the opportunity to participate in events both virtually and on campus.

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A&M to host multiple events celebrating Black History Month

By Aubrey Vogel @aubrey_vogel This February, Texas A&M will honor Black History Month by emphasizing the foundations of Black family life and history.

The theme for Black History Month 2021 is “The Black Family: Representation, Identity and Diversity,” which the Association for the Study of African American Life and History sets. This theme is focused on looking at the Black family as a foundation of Black life and history.

“While the role of the Black family has been described by some as a microcosm of the entire race, its complexity as the ‘foundation’ of African American life and history can be seen in numerous debates over how to represent its meaning and typicality from a historical perspective — as slave or free, as patriarchal or matriarchal/matrifocal, as single-headed or dual-headed household, as extended or nuclear, as fictive kin or blood lineage, as legal or common law, and as Black or interracial, etc.,” a document from the Association for the Study of African American Life and History reads.

President of A&M’s Black Graduate Students’ Association Asha Winfield said Black History Month is a purposeful time to showcase Black life. Winfield said she believes it’s important to highlight Black history and memory in school curriculums from grade school to secondary and higher education.

“I think Black History Month in general was intention[al] from its inception. It is a time where everyone can participate and everyone can be intentional about learning our history together,” Winfield said. “What I appreciate most is hearing from my teacher friends about how Black history is impacting their students of color, especially to those who don’t get that information anywhere

else.”

Winfield said although Black History Month is only during February, it is still paramount to celebrate and remember Black lives always, and year-round.

“I want to see it happen all year,” Winfield said. “I know that there are organizations that are adamant about creating space for Black students and students of color.”

A&M will host events on campus and virtually throughout the month that highlight Black lives. In an article on Texas A&M Today, Black Student Alliance Council President Corniyah Bradley encouraged all students to attend.

“BSAC strives to unify the community in its programs and recognize the successes of those in our community,” Bradley said.

“Having events virtually increases the accessibility and outreach. Texas A&M students across the globe can tune in and participate in our events.”

Winfield said the Black Graduate Students’ Association will host multiple events including a Black Aggie Art Show in conjunction with the College of Architecture’s Diversity Council to highlight local Black artists in the Bryan-College Station community. Additionally, BSAC will be hosting a Virtual Paint and Sip on Feb. 12 where a local Black Aggie artist will lead participants in painting a piece to celebrate Black life and love.

“I get excited for Black History Month because of what we get to do here,” Winfield said. “We get to plan events that are really Afrocentric. They are calling for those who are part of the African diaspora to really share their stories because storytelling is really big in our culture — to share their experiences, art and lives in this moment. It’s my favorite month of the year.”

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OPINION

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Assistant opinion editor Caleb Powell argues that A&M should require reports of sexual harassment claims be requested while hiring prospective employees.

Texas A&M needs Title IX reform Assistant opinion editor Caleb Powell says ‘pass the harasser’ practice should stop Caleb Powell

F

@calebpowell23

aculty at Texas A&M hold positions of power over their peers and students, so you would think the university would want to know any information about prospective instructors and how they treat their peers and subordinates. However, while Title IX compels universities to investigate sexual harassment claims, they are not required to disclose findings to future employers — or to seek them out. While some universities may be aware of a candidate’s misconduct, many have no idea prospective employees have been accused of any wrongdoing.

A significant problem is that universities don’t communicate with one another about professors accused of misconduct. Schools looking to hire a new faculty member often don’t ask former employers about any Title IX investigations for sexual harassment.

Alternatively, universities often sign settlement agreements that leave the guilty employee’s identity confidential, meaning

future employers are unaware of a candidate’s wrongdoing. These practices mean students are at risk of becoming potential victims of a professor with a history of sexual misconduct.

A&M Associate Professor of Economics Jennifer Doleac gave me some insight as to why we should overhaul our Title IX policies.

“The economics profession has been really focused on identifying bad actors in the profession and finding ways to hold them accountable,” Doleac said. “I’ve become increasingly interested in this problem of people hopping from university to university basically fleeing Title IX investigations.”

What Doleac is referring to is a practice called “pass the harasser.” In effect, any time a faculty member commits sexual harassment, they resign and find a new institution before the Title IX investigation concludes. Because universities don’t share ongoing investigations into faculty members, A&M could hire a repeat offender and be none the wiser.

Doleac referenced several pilot programs A&M could learn from to amend its own Title IX policies. The University of Illinois, for example, is requiring candidates to disclose any findings of sexual misconduct or harassment. Illinois’s human resources department will also contact former employers

for any misconduct investigations involving the hiree – concluded or otherwise. Doing so is imperative to protect students from repeat offenders, especially since professors are authority figures at universities.

“It would be important even if we were only looking out for ourselves and our colleagues, but we also have a responsibility to our students,” Doleac said. “There is a power dynamic that just gives people much more opportunity to do harm if they are the type of person who wants to do it.”

Some oppose those reforms by arguing professors with a blemished record would be under heavy scrutiny. They see more transparent Title IX policies as a way to discriminate against older professors who have had more chances to offend colleagues. As such, they claim there are more opportunities for bitter peers to derail their careers.

However, let’s look at astronomy professor Timothy Slater at the University of Wyoming. According to a report from his previous employer, the University of Arizona, Slater allegedly asked a student to give other women tips on oral sex. He told another graduate student she’d teach better without underwear. And he gave another employee a vibrator.

Slater openly discussed the Title IX inves-

tigations with the University of Wyoming while they were hiring him, yet according to a spokesperson for the school, there were “no barriers to his hiring,” despite the allegations.

Title IX disclosure reforms are meant to help candidates who have been investigated contextualize the report’s findings. Doleac explained how there’s a spectrum of misconduct, ranging from a one-off instance to repeated harassment investigations.

“I don’t think any of the policies out there call for previous Title IX records to essentially be disqualifying,” Doleac said. “It’s basically presented as information along with all the other information in the packet.”

The most significant reason to move forward with the Title IX reforms is to give students and coworkers more information about who the university is hiring. Aggies shouldn’t have to worry about professors making unwanted advances or lewd comments. Changing our Title IX policies is the first, and most significant, step in ending “pass the harasser.”

Asking former employers about investigations and passing our own findings to a candidate’s future boss will ensure serial offenders cannot fly under the radar.

Caleb Powell is a biomedical engineering sophomore and opinion editor for The Battalion.

NEWS

5

The Battalion | 2.4.21

A&M aids elementary students by providing at-home STEM learning

By Aubrey Vogel @aubrey_vogel Researchers with the Texas A&M College of Education and Human Development have received an $8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education.

With a science and literacy focus, Project VICTORY, or Virtually-Infused Collaborations for Teaching and Learning Opportunities for Rural Youth, will look into the instruction of virtual and face-toface learning. Co-Principal Investigator Beverly Irby said A&M was one of seven schools in the country to receive this grant.

“This is an extremely large grant in and of itself for the social sciences,” Irby said.

“We are very fortunate to continue to receive these grants.”

The grant will allow for the researchers to explore virtual STEM learning versus face-to-face for students in the third to fifth grade in rural areas. According to an article on Texas A&M Today, this is the first controlled study of its kind. Principal Investigator for Project VICTORY Rafael Lara-Alecio said they are focusing on improving the teaching of English for students in addition to the focus on STEM. “We expect that our students will be able to gather the proper English as an academic language, so they can be successful in content areas such as mathematics and science and to see the multiple benefits,”

Lara-Alecio said.

The project will look at rural schools with low-incomes to help to enhance literacy through STEM incentives. Currently, the program has secured 77 Texas school districts, with a goal to add more, that are willing to allow the researchers to conduct the program within their schools.

“For many years, we have been working [on] creating trust between our programs and the school districts, which is not easy,” Lara-Alecio said. “The program was extremely impressed when we presented 70 school districts across Texas eager to work with our program because they know the type of quality program we have.”

With the program’s focus on STEM, the plan is to provide take-home science experiments for students to complete with their families. Irby said this is important because it allows for families to be exposed to the program at home and beyond the classroom through family involvement in science.

STEM students at A&M can get involved with this program by serving as science role models and mentors for students. Researchers hope having college students serve as mentors will increase the interest in STEM areas as well as motivate the students.

“It’s a beautiful model,” Irby said. “We have students from our campus helping students out in the [elementary] schools.”

The project will run for three years beginning in the fall of 2021. More information for this project can be found on the College of Education and Human Development website.

Project VICTORY to utilize $8 million grant

FILE

The Texas A&M College of Education & Human Development received an $8 million grant to allow researchers to explore STEM learning with students in rural areas.

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OPINION

6

The Battalion | 2.4.21

EDITORIAL BOARD

Fish Camp needs adult supervision L ittle has changed at Fish Camp since the oldest member of The Battalion’s Editorial Board attended some 12 years ago. In that time, the organization has been plagued by persistent rumors of certain students (mostly men) abusing their positions as counselors to take advantage of incoming freshmen (mostly women).

Such behavior should be called out for what it is: predation. And predation cannot be tolerated. Those inclined to wave off such instances as “isolated” should revisit the often misused idiom “one bad apple.” They should also review the comments made by Lauren Carroll Spitznagle — it is “common knowledge” among her peers that incoming students have been sexually assaulted by Fish Camp staff. As the executive director of the Brazos Valley Sexual Assault Resource Center, or BVSARC, Carroll Spitznagle is the relevant subject matter expert here.

Unfortunately, as well-intentioned as Fish Camp Head Director Eric Muñoz might be, his proposed solution — putting Fish Camp chairs through A&M’s Green Dot Bystander Intervention program — isn’t up to the task. Alas, he seems to have misjudged the magnitude of the challenge which faces him.

While Green Dot training might ameliorate the issue of chairs not properly filing reports of sexual assault, it does little to change the fact that such reports are rarely filed in the first place. Worse, it does nothing to directly handle the issue that those who exhibit predatory behaviors aren’t the Fish Camp chairs, but the Fish Camp counselors.

Additionally, more Green Dot training won’t counteract the more systemic and historical issues at play.

The Battalion’s Editorial Board finds it troubling that, aside from its two faculty advisors, Fish Camp’s membership is composed exclusively of students. As best as we can tell, these students receive minimal training on matters of sexual assault — e.g., what it is, how to identify it and the protocols of reporting it. We doubt Fish Camp’s problem would be

this pervasive if it were subject to more stringent university supervision.

Also of concern are Fish Camp’s Developmental Program Counselor Packets, which contain brief summations of investigations undertaken by the organization when serious incidents have occurred. Such incidents range in seriousness from inappropriate sexual innuendos to student deaths. But these descriptions — which are meant to “widen [one’s] perspective and put purpose and reason behind why Fish Camp has to make certain decisions,” according to the documents — make no mention of sexual assault or harassment. This absence can only have one of two explanations: Either Fish Camp has never investigated a sexual assault claim, or the organization has simply not seen fit to include such investigations in their counselor packets.

Neither explanation bodes well for the seriousness with which Fish Camp has taken allegations of sexual assault in the last quarter century. Nor does it bode well for the incoming freshmen committed to their charge.

And then there is the nature of Fish Camp’s application process. Nothing The Battalion has uncovered has evidenced a mechanism for identifying potential predators before they become staff members. Instead, those with whom The Battalion spoke confirm what many readers already know to be true: The Fish Camp application process is a popularity contest. There is little surprise in this. As has been said previously, Fish Camp’s staff is comprised entirely of students. Unfortunately, this is often what happens when 18-22 year olds are in charge of hiring their peers for positions in a student organization.

However, it must also be acknowledged that Fish Camp isn’t like many of the other organizations at Texas A&M. The nature of Fish Camp is such that older college students are put into close and extended contact with what are effectively still high school students.

This contact not only occurs in isolated environments like campgrounds in the middle of the woods, but in a student’s

first year, when their Fish Camp counselors are meant to be providing mentorship. Because of this, it isn’t merely that Fish Camp’s application process allows potential predators to pass through without being identified. By accepting charismatic students who are good at breaking down the inhibitions of anxious high schoolers, however unintentionally, Fish Camp’s application process facilitates this predation as well.

For these reasons, it isn’t sufficient for Fish Camp’s standards to be on par with other student organizations — it must exceed them.

The Battalion therefore makes the following recommendations to Muñoz, the organization in his charge and university officials more broadly:

and handle the situation itself. If, heaven forbid, other incidents occur and criminal investigations are opened, no one would take comfort in the university not being “officially” responsible.

The Battalion’s editorial opinion is determined by its Editorial Board, with the editor-in-chief having final responsibility.

I. The Green Dot Bystander Intervention Program should be required of all members, not ONLY the chairs. This includes both staff and leadership, but this training is especially important for counselors.

Brady Stone Editor-in-Chief

Myranda Campanella Managing Editor

II. Fish Camp’s Counselor Packets should include several examples of findings from sexual assault investigations, as well as lessons learned from these incidents. If Fish Camp has never performed such an investigation before, they should review their practices and make public why this has never occurred.

III. Fish Camp needs to invite subject matter experts into the room during their application and training processes. We recommend Muñoz reach out to A&M’s Health Promotion office and Brazos Valley Sexual Assault Resource Center, specifically. Health Promotion coordinator Denise Crisafi (who manages the STAND Up Workshops on campus) and Lauren Carroll Spitznagle of BVSARC both told The Battalion that they would be happy to work with Fish Camp.

IV. If Fish Camp is unwilling to make the necessary changes to protect incoming students, the university must step in

Joshua Howell Opinion Editor

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