In light of the Guam Superior Court’s Jan. 12 indictment of Michael B. Ehlert Ph.D. associate professor of psychology, the University of Guam administration has been making progress to ensure the safety and welfare of the students and faculty at the University of Guam.
Ehlert was indicted for criminal sexual conduct and official misconduct after two UOG students filed complaints of sexual assault that occurred at his home at the end of the Fall 2014 semester.
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The Ehlert case has prompted the UOG community to respond by helping to get them Criminal defense lawyer, empower students with knowledge and available resources about sexual assault and harassment and by proposing new campus policies and procedures.
UOG President Robert Underwood encourages anyone to bring a concern or issue directly to his attention or to the attention of the Senior Vice President Anita Enriquez and EEO institutional compliance officer Elaine Faculo-Gogue.
President Underwood said, “I want everyone both staff member and student to feel absolutely comfortable and secure here at the University of Guam. We have followed our policies. We have followed our procedures. Sometimes the decisions that people make are not the same decisions. But I followed our policies and procedures. Our outreach has not been as strong as it could be but we are endeavoring to make every effort and every person safe and secure.”
At a recent community forum, President Underwood emphasized that there are three major changes to the UOG Sexual Misconduct Policy that include banning amorous relationships between faculty, staff, and students, a Yes Means Yes affirmative consent, and finalizing the protocol for reporting sexual harassment.
Aside from directly contacting UOG President Underwood, SVP Enriquez, and EEO Faculo-Gogue, students can also seek help regarding sexual misconduct by contacting GPD, UOG Isa Psychological Services, and UOG Violence Against Women Prevention Program.
According to EEO Elaine Faculo-Gogue, “sexual misconduct” includes sexual harassment, sexual assault, and may include domestic violence, dating violence, stalking and inappropriate amorous relationships.” Faculo-Gogue says there have only been two complaints since the Ehlert case and 17 official cases in the past 10 years.
“I want everyone to have a good and pleasant college experience. If any student has a concern, please do something. These kind of issues (sexual misconduct and discrimination) we cannot afford to keep quiet about. Ask friends and classmates,” said Faculo-Gogue.
The EEO/ADA office handles sexual misconduct and discrimination complaints and the Violence Against Women Prevention Program handles sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking.
However, not many students are aware of the protocols and policies.
Selene Santos, a UOG junior majoring in linguistics said, “All I have heard is that there is this professor who allegedly is harassing students. My parents told me about it and they said to just be careful. Now that I’ve heard about it, I’m kind of scared because I have a late night class. I know there is a G4S escort service and counseling that is free in the HSS building.
Some students raised concerns about Ehlert having connections with Isa Psychological Services and VAWPP because he was part of the psychology department.
When asked if Dr. Ehlert ever worked at VAWPP or Isa, the VAWPP and Isa Director Dr. Twaddle explained that as Dr. Ehlert is an experimental psychologist, he was not affiliated with either program.
“We have a big team of supervisors and graduate students in both VAWPP and Isa. It’s a good team of people,” he said.
VAWPP education and training coordinator, Jean Macalinao, said that UOG’s sexual assault statistics are very low in comparison to other college campuses.
“I am very proud of the students who have come forward and I admire their courage and persistence because that takes a lot of effort on their part and I want everyone to feel like they can do that,” said President Underwood.
EEO Faculo-Gogue encourages anyone to call the new helpline 735-HELP or stop by her office located at Dorm 2 near the UOG Field House to report any sexual misconduct or discrimination. For sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking, contact VAWPP at 735-2890 and vawpp@uguam.uog.edu. For campus security (G4S) escort, contact 888-2456. For free counseling, contact Isa Psychological Services at 735-2883 and isa@uguam.uog.edu. Students may also report any issue or concern directly to President Underwood or SVP Anita Enriquez.