Dear Spartan Community,
Last month, I shared a message from the CSU Chancellor’s Office regarding the status of the Title IX assessments of all CSU campuses being conducted by Cozen O’Connor, the firm retained by the Chancellor’s office. I write with updates on the immediate steps our campus has taken following this assessment.
SJSU’s Campus Implementation Team
SJSU has empaneled a diverse implementation team including the following community members:
- Peter Lim, Interim Title IX and Gender Equity Officer (Chair)
- Julie Paisant, Senior Director of Employee Relations and DHR Administrator
- Karthika Sasikumar, Professor of Political Science (Faculty Representative)
- Sarah Schraeder, Research Associate and Program Coordinator for Institutional Effectiveness (Employee Representative)
- Nina Chuang, President and CEO of Associated Students (Student Representative)
- Lisa Millora, Vice President for Strategy and Institutional Affairs & Chief of Staff (President’s Cabinet Representative)
Meetings with Cozen O’Connor
Implementation teams from all 23 CSU campuses met with a team from Cozen O’Connor on April 18 and April 28, 2023 to introduce the campus implementation teams to Cozen O’Connor’s review, explain effective practices for Title IX and DHR programs, gather campus-specific feedback on needs, and identify next steps. Cozen O’Connor did not deliver campus-specific recommendations. During the two four-hour meetings, Cozen O’Connor discussed their assessment process and high-level observations on the differences and similarities between each campus’s Title IX and DHR programs, including data on reporting volume and staffing. Five core themes emerged from their work on all 23 campuses:
- Observations about the need for more resourcing on most campuses;
- A need to augment, coordinate, centralize and track prevention and education programs;
- The need for some mechanism to address below-the-bar behavior;
- A general lack of trust by campuses for their administrators and the Chancellor's Office; and
- A lack of structures to ensure accountability in individual Title IX and DHR cases.
Next Steps
On May 24, 2023, Cozen O’Connor will deliver their systemwide feedback and recommendations to the Board of Trustees. These recommendations will not be campus specific. Following this, Cozen O’Connor will share a systemwide report and a report for each campus. The reports will be provided to the presidents and include campus-specific recommendations for all 23 Title IX and DHR programs. This summer, Cozen O’Connor will meet with each Campus Implementation Team to describe how best to implement their campus-specific recommendations. Each campus will also develop a communications plan designed to consistently share implementation progress with the community.
As we anticipate the challenging and important work ahead, I am grateful for our campus community members for their engagement in the assessment and implementation process, including our Campus Implementation Team. It is through such involvement and partnership, that the university will continue to uphold its commitment to responsibility, action, and openness.
Sincerely,
Dr. Cynthia Teniente-Matson
President
