OPEN LETTER TO INTERIM PRESIDENT AUSTIN, PROVOST QUICK, AND INTERIM DEAN CLAPP

August 30, 2018

At the outset of academic year 2018-2019, we, the organized coalition of graduate students and alumni of the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, would like to reaffirm our commitment to collaborating with administration, faculty, staff, and students to develop a culture of accountability and transparency.

For nearly a year, we have fought hard and taken personal risks to advocate for an administration that prioritizes student safety and effectively addresses abuses of power. Over the past summer, we experienced a whirlwind of revelations and transitions involving our School and the larger University. Although disheartened by the most recent scandals, we also feel hopeful about the new faces in leadership who appear to share our priority of ensuring the safety and wellbeing of our community.

New faces alone, however, are not enough to create and sustain meaningful systemic change. We need concrete actions in order to create a cultural overhaul and rebuild trust. We now look to you, as our leaders, to demonstrate transparency and accountability and set the tone for our future. With that in mind, we encourage you to take the following action steps:

1. Immediately inform the campus community about the status of Dr. Erick Guerrero’s sanctions now that the new semester has started. Not knowing whether or not he will be on campus or involved in school activities directly jeopardizes our well-being and we are still watching to see how our leaders make decisions and communicate with us about this unresolved case.
2. Develop clear communication channels for updating the community about the implementation of task force recommendations. Task forces at the School and University levels have generated a number of suggestions for reducing abuses of power through policy and cultural changes. Ongoing, direct communication about how these suggestions are being implemented will increase accountability and rebuild trust.
3. Create space for ongoing student representation on key governing bodies. Student participation in leadership will enhance decision-making and protect against future abuses of power. Students should be given formal roles on all important leadership bodies, including faculty councils, the Board of Trustees, and the Presidential Search Advisory Committee. The Graduate Student Government has made a similar request.

We know that what comes next will not be easy. Creating a truly open, transparent and long-term dialogue will take a great effort on all fronts. We hope the abuses of power over the past years will bring new breath to our school and to our campus community at large. We look forward to working with you to build an inclusive, safe University that we can all be proud of.