Title IX Officer Also Serves as Ombuds at Florida Institute of Technology
In 2021, the private research university in Melbourne, Florida appointed Rebecca Crook as its first part-time Ombuds. Crook's other job, however, was Executive Assistant to the University President. By May 2022, that experiment was abandoned and Florida Tech opened a search for a dedicated, campus-wide Ombuds that would practice to IOA standards. Now, amid a flurry of departures from the administration, Florida Tech has hired Grace Gamage, who serves as the new, acting Title IX Coordinator and Ombudsperson.
Gamage has a decade of experience in higher education, primarily in Title IX and athletic compliance. She previously worked at Jacksonville University, and The Citadel. She graduated from Barry University (where she was a standout softball player) and earned her JD at the University of Florida. (FIT Crimson; LinkedIn.)
Yea, sure! Prosecute people for violating Title IX and implement discipline, and concurrently be an independent and neutral voice. What a joke.
ReplyDeleteThe university has really put her into an untenable position. There's simply no way to reconcile the conflicting mandates of these two positions. The dual appointment undermines both.
ReplyDeleteUnreal.
ReplyDeleteDo we know, will the IOA Board or another group (perhaps the many ombuds serving each of Florida's state universities) communicate the impossibility of this dual role?
ReplyDeleteI hope so! (But I don't know if the IOA volunteers have the bandwidth.)
Delete