Governor Edwards Says LSU Report ‘Turned His Stomach’
Governor John Bel Edwards pledges to make changes at all Universities in Louisiana to make sure student's voices are heard. He talked about the Husch Blackwell Report that outlined deficiencies in the handling of addressing allegations of sexual misconduct and domestic violence on campus by athletes, coaches and others.
The Governor says
I was very concerned when I read it. It turned my stomach. The report is very troubling because it was obviously an institutional failure of leadership at the highest levels going back to 2013.
Edwards says most of the LSU Board of Supervisors in place at the time have been changed and he adds:
I have every confidence that the board is going to do everything they can to fix these problems including having the right policies in place and properly resourced. But we need every student in the country need to know that if they come to a university in Louisiana they are going to be safe and that their safety and well being is our highest priority.
The Governor also expressed disappointment in how many of these allegations were handled by leaders of the University.
This idea that somehow you can protect the institution at the expense of your students is misguided. I am at a total loss to explain the decision making and what happened. I am also determined that this is going to get fixed and all of our universities will participate.