PATH PRESS RELEASE 9-26-18

PATH Releases Recommendations To Phillips Exeter Academy Regarding Sexual Misconduct

Petition Recommends Renewed Investigation, Further Accountability and Other Actions to Properly Address Wrongdoings

Source: PATH

BOSTON, Sept. 26, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — PATH (Phillips Exeter Alumni for Truth and Healing) today announced it has released a petition with specific recommendations for Phillips Exeter Academy to properly address past sexual misconduct at the school. The petition, available online , is part of PATH’s mission to support Exeter’s efforts to acknowledge harm done to students by sexual misconduct, reconcile with alumni survivors, and promote informed cultural change at the school. It follows reports released by Exeter last month that investigated accusations of sexual misconduct and how the school’s administration handled such situations.

“Exeter currently has a supportive community and capable administration, and our working relationship with the schools is cooperative by design. Our PATH working group carefully reviewed the reports and found them incomplete, so we developed specific recommendations for Exeter to address this,” said Julia Gray, a 1997 graduate and survivor of a sexual assault while a student. “We believe Exeter is uniquely positioned to take the lead amongst secondary schools on how they handle instances of sexual misconduct and look forward to continuing our work together.”

Among PATH’s recommendations is that Exeter conduct a more complete, transparent investigation of misconduct to date. “The decades of sexual misconduct at the school and past administrations’ failure to appropriately respond is more pervasive than these reports indicate. An honest, comprehensive review of Exeter’s history can provide administrators a better understanding of how to repair past harm and prevent it from occurring in the future,” said Kristin Knuuttila, lawyer for alumni survivors.

Since going live last Friday, hundreds of Exeter alumni have signed PATH’s petition in support of its recommendations.

About PATH
Phillips Exeter Alumni for Truth and Healing is a group of Phillips Exeter Academy alumni volunteers devoted to ensuring Exeter comprehensively acknowledges harm done to students by sexual misconduct and reconciles with alumni survivors.

Media Contact:
Larry Bouchie, TurboPR for PATH
Larry(at)TurboPR.com
781-454-5287