Some members of the U.S. Congress during a hearing Tuesday focused on Haskell Indian Nations University’s alleged failures to respond to reports of sexual violence and support student survivors appropriately.

The hearing was months in the making following the release of an 80-page investigative report supported by more than 1,300 pages of exhibits. In addition to the issues surrounding sexual assaults, the investigation report discusses other allegations against faculty, including bullying, theft, nepotism, conflicts of interest, abuses of power, harassment, favoritism and more. (See the full PDF report at this link. It’s a large file that may be slow to load.)

The joint hearing included members of the Committee on Natural Resources and the Committee on Education and the Workforce’s Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Development, as well as Kansas Rep. Tracey Mann, a Republican from Salina representing District 1, which includes Haskell. 

Rep. Harriet Hageman, a Wyoming Republican, read aloud part of the written testimony of one student and sexual assault survivor. 

“‘I experienced many family, educational and personal struggles during my time at Haskell, for which I received no support. In many cases, Haskell administrators exacerbated or created challenges,’” Hageman read. 

The student wrote that she had shared that she had attempted suicide, but her cry for help was not heard. 

“She goes on to explain that she was drugged, raped and held against her will for 15 hours off campus. She took initiative and approached the university, but received no support from Haskell administration,” Hageman said. “Instead of being assisted, she was kicked out of Haskell twice due to a low GPA, and she was denied her Pell grant. To say that this is unacceptable is an understatement.”

The report, though heavily redacted, includes multiple similar reports from survivors and their peers. 

Previously fired Haskell cross country coach Clay Mayes — who said he was offered his job back the day the investigative report was released, and officially reinstated last week — was one of five witnesses to speak to committee members on Tuesday. 

Mayes said he had personally made dozens of reports via email to higher-ups, the federal Bureau of Indian Education, which oversees Haskell, and law enforcement. Some of those were regarding students’ reports of sexual assaults, and some were regarding other alleged misconduct. He said he never received responses to any of his reports, though he did receive retaliation, ultimately resulting in his termination in April 2022 after he requested a due process hearing. (Read more about that at this link.) 

Mayes said he’d heard from others that “admitting any wrongdoing is not OK,” and that “There seems to be a code of ‘don’t respond to any reports.’” He attributed part of that to people having fear “due to certain alliances.”

He said he was not aware of the university taking action to remove any predators who had been reported.

“They would just sign a no-contact (order), so the women couldn’t go certain places that the predators were,” Mayes said. 

He had reported sexual assaults to law enforcement, he said, because he’s required by law to do so.

One survivor told investigators that “If HINU would address issues pertaining to these types of reports, there wouldn’t be more victims.” 

The report also includes allegations that at least one Haskell staff member, whose identity is redacted, frequently rubbed athletes’ backs and looked women up and down in a way that made them uncomfortable. 

Some administrators told investigators that they were not aware of any reports of sexual assault or rape. The investigation concluded that Haskell does not follow its own policies and processes, “staff appear to take minimum actions” when students allege sexual assault, and that procedures are insufficient and place students’ health and safety at risk. 

Emily Martin, chief program officer for the National Women’s Law Center, testified about best practices regarding sexual assault and issues around Title IX — the federal law that prohibits sex discrimination — on campus. Martin said leadership at every level can set a tone of prevention of sexual assault. 

“There is training that can and should be done, both as staff and students, so that people understand what responses are available, what sexual harassment is, and help to unlearn some of the biases that often infect staff responses when students report sexual harassment and assault,” Martin said. 

In addition, she said that “sexual violence complaints should never be held to a higher standard than other student misconduct complaints.”

She said simple supports such as letting a survivor change their class schedule to avoid their assailant, offering counseling, and giving survivors opportunities to improve grades that have fallen as a result of an assault would help preserve survivors’ access to education, as Title IX requires. Some administrators interviewed in the investigation said some of those services are in place, but survivors’ accounts and knowledge of what should have been available to them clashed. 

“The new Title IX regulations make clear schools must not make it more difficult to discipline a student for raping someone than for punching someone, and schools must provide strong protection against retaliation,” Martin continued, later saying that it was “deeply disappointing” that the House majority had voted against Title IX updates “that strengthen survivor protections and support.” 

Martin said it was time for Haskell to answer survivors’ calls for accountability and culture change. 

Some legislators questioned whether Haskell was a good use of taxpayer money, considering the seriousness of the issues contained in the report. 

Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs Bryan Newland testified that Haskell has put in place a campus advocate coordinator to help support students since the report was released.

He said leadership of Haskell needed to have control over the university and to make sure that “these factions and cliques that have formed on campus are not dragging students into their disputes.” 

Rep. Melanie Stansbury, a Democrat representing New Mexico, said she wanted to ensure students who will soon come to campus know that it’s a safe place. 

“I want to say this loud and proud for the Haskell community: We’re proud of you. We know that you’re proud of your school,” Stansbury said. 

Stansbury said she wanted to take a moment to address that Haskell is a federal school because the government used to have forced assimilation practices. Those BIE schools have been transformed into vibrant campuses that are centers for Native education and leadership over the last several decades, she said. The U.S. government signed hundreds of treaties with tribes, and “many of them guaranteed that education, economic development and other resources would be provided to our tribal nations,” she said. 

Haskell’s funding is not just an issue to taxpayers, she said. “It’s about actually making good on treaty and trust responsibilities,” Stansbury said. 

Mackenzie Clark (she/her), reporter/founder of The Lawrence Times, can be reached at mclark (at) lawrencekstimes (dot) com. Read more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.

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