(Waco, August 2, 2018) Bears for Leadership Reform (BLR) today urged the Baylor administration and the Board of Regents to change their course in order to bring an end to the sexual assault scandal that has engulfed the university for over 2 years. Specifically, BLR said the Board must “come clean” about all the issues and board actions during and following the so-called Pepper Hamilton report that was issued in 2016. That 13-page summary was prepared for the Board and distributed to the media but the complete investigative results have never been released.

Last week, the highly-regarded alumni organization, Baylor Line Foundation, demanded a full and complete report with total transparency from the Board. In addition, attorneys suing on behalf of university female victims released details about Ian McCaw’s deposition. McCaw is the former Baylor Athletic Director. McCaw, under oath, stated that the football staff and especially African-American players were targeted by investigators to deflect attention from long-standing university-wide problems.

“Other universities have been able to move forward by telling the whole truth and then taking steps to make sure something like this could never happen again,” said John Eddie Williams, BLR President and namesake of the field at Baylor’s McLane Stadium. “All the facts will be revealed in the litigation” said the famed Houston legal counsel. “Our BLR leadership is deeply disturbed that the Baylor Family has a lot of questions. None of them have been answered.”

Bears for Leadership Reform has not directly criticized the Board of Regents, or Baylor leadership, since Dr. Linda Livingstone became president over a year ago. The group said it wanted to give the new president and new Board leadership an opportunity to be more transparent and accountable to the Baylor Family concerning the sexual assault scandal and the Pepper Hamilton investigation. Today’s release is a signal that BLR has deep concerns that the university and the Regents are not being forthright with the Baylor Family.

“Based on the Ian McCaw deposition and the recent Phil Bennett article, the Pepper Hamilton investigation is further evidence of a cover up,” stated BLR board member, former Chairman of the Board of Regents, and distinguished alumni Gale Galloway. “I think the only way out is for the university and the regents to fully disclose the scope and all of the facts surrounding the Pepper Hamilton investigation.”

BLR, which was formed in 2016, has called on the Baylor Board of Regents and University officials to release the full Pepper Hamilton report of the investigation, order an independent 3rd party review of how Pepper Hamilton conducted their investigation and how the Regents managed the results of the investigation. The group also requests a full accounting of money spent on the investigation, including PR firms and attorneys, and payouts to former athletic department and university officials. Baylor officials have repeatedly rebuffed the requests, saying it is time for the university to move forward.

In addition to transparency and the release of details of the investigation, BLR is also calling for the resignations of all Regents involved in Baylor’s handling of the sexual assault scandal.

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