Live at 6 | Public Document From College Of Architecture Includes Alleged Misconduct

By James Groh – Syracuse, N.Y. (CitrusTV) – An anonymously sourced list accuses three current Syracuse Architecture School professors and three ex-professors of sexual misconduct in the architecture industry.

Syracuse students became aware of the list last weekend when it was emailed to them via an architecture school listserv.

None of the claims made in the public document are verifiable, formal, or legal accusations. It’s why the University neither refutes nor accepts the list.

“The school and the university are agnostic on this piece of information. Which is to say…we’re not for it. We’re not against it. It is a piece of information,” the Architecture School Dean Michael Speaks said during a forum that addressed the issue.

The anonymous nature of the document makes it hard for the university to take action said Dean Speaks. It’s why the professors in question haven’t been approached about the situation. The school is aware of the issue but can’t legally do anything about it.

Anonymity is a huge part of this list. In its first couple of sentences it gives detailed instructions on how to create an account via the dark web to make sure no one can trace the comments.

The accusations claim inappropriate touching, comments, and favoritism among others that the current and former professors potentially committed.

This is not a Syracuse specific list, though. It was created as a forum for women in the architecture industry to anonymously discuss inappropriate behavior they encountered in the workplace. There are professors and professionals listed from all over the county.

However, this has made some cautious to talk about it. Architecture students refused to comment on the subject with CitrusTV. Also, two of the current professors did not respond to CitrusTV’s attempts at contacting them. One said he refused to talk.

While this list has shocked students, not all are surprised.

“It’s not like its things you don’t know happen on a daily basis,” Fifth-Year Senior Kamila Valera said.

Regardless of the validity of the document, Varela is happy that something is being done to address the alleged issue.

“The fact that people are coming up and speaking about it is encouraging.”

She has taken courses with those professors, but she said that she didn’t expect such behavior from them.

While the school can’t take formal action against the professors, it is going to do a climate assessment to understand how students, faculty, and staff feel in the architecture school.