Students received an email yesterday from Camille Lizarríbar, dean of students for AS&E, notifying them of an incident “when a group of students was verbally assaulted by another group in what was described as a racially motivated incident.”
She reports that TUPD responded to the incident and has since closed its investigation. The Office of Equal Opportunity is now reviewing the event and the Office of Community Standards will “address all violations with the students involved in the verbal assault.”
Because the investigation is ongoing, additional information cannot be shared at this time.
“These actions, regardless of their motivation or intent, are reprehensible and violate the values and expectations of behavior of our community. Members of our community have been harmed and distressed, and there is repair work to be done by all of us,” Lizarríbar wrote. “We are all responsible to each other, and this is a moment from which we should all learn.”
Lizarríbar then apologized for the delayed notification of the incident, which she attributed to Tufts lacking standard practice for sharing incident reports with students.
“From now on, I will report to you when an incident of this nature has occurred, even if I may be limited in the details that I know or can share,” she explained.
Lizarríbar then listed the Dean of Student Affairs office, the Office of Equal Opportunity, the Division of Diversity and Inclusion and Tufts University Public Safety as resources where students can report “behaviors that are contrary to our values and community standards,” ensuring they will handle them with confidentiality.
“I understand also that hearing about this incident may cause its own distress, and I want to underscore the resources available to everyone in the community,” she wrote, pointing students to open appointments and the Counselor-on-Call options at CMHS. “We are always here to support you, and genuinely welcome you to reach out.”
