Dear Presidential Review Committee: As a member of a Duke family (father, Erwin Baumer, '57; sister, Adrienne Baumer Port, '90; brother-in-law, Chris Port, '90; husband, Thomas Rhoads, '92) and a recent returnee to the Triangle, it goes without saying that the events of Spring 2006 were quite distressing.
I was saddened by the allegations, but horrified by the University's response. Duke's administration was so utterly concerned with being "politically correct" that they were an embarrassment to the entire Duke community. The whole situation was a mess, exacerbated by President Richard Brodhead and the faculty. My husband and brother-in-law were student athletes at Duke and could not fathom how the University could abandon those boys in their hour of need. How isolated they must have felt (and probably still do)!
In my humble opinion, the president and the 88 faculty members are no less accountable than former Durham district attorney Mike Nifong himself. It is time for a change! The inadequacy of President Brodhead's leadership has been on display to the world, must Duke University continue to be cast in the shadow of this underwhelming person?
Angie Rhoads
Trinity '92
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