BSU Incident Response

The investigation by Spokane Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation continues to research the origin of the attack in order to identify the individuals responsible.  GU’s Information Technology Services department along with Campus Security and Public Safety are supporting the investigation as requested. It is vitally important that the analysis continue unimpeded, so that all legal remedies available to us may be pursued as the responsible parties are identified.

Update 11/23/21: The FBI has notified the University that the perpetrators most likely responsible for the November 2020 attack on BSU reside outside the U.S. and have no apparent ties to Gonzaga University. While this finding is significant, it does not negate the harm inflicted upon individuals at the meeting or the wider community. We understand that not knowing the identity of the perpetrators is not the closure we all desired.

Should a Gonzaga community member be found responsible for the behavior that violates student conduct or employee policies, the repercussions would be severe. For a student, the Resolution Center for Student Conduct & Conflict handles disciplinary outcomes which could include suspension and or expulsion from the University. For an employee, Human Resources would be involved with disciplinary actions which could include suspension and or dismissal from the University.

• ITS has provided greater understanding of security features for virtual meeting experiences, including how to make meetings private, and is implementing additional measures in our own technology systems to prevent interference and intrusion.
• On Nov. 10, the Office of Diversity, Inclusion, Community and Equity (DICE) supported a Student Healing Circle – a safe space for students to process how they are feeling, centering the voices of BIPOC students impacted by the attacks.
• An incident response team includes Raymond Reyes and Robin Kelly from the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (ODEI), and Kent Porterfield and Joan Iva Fawcett from Student Affairs. They are convening a larger group of cross-campus partners to address needs for improved proactive communication. Security, Alumni Relations, Marketing & Communications, and academic areas are all represented in this effort.
• Many departments have committed their professional development programs this year to diversity, equity and inclusion (through education such as DiversityEdu).

Note: President McCulloh outlined his key commitments to the work of the Council on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion again in recognition of Juneteenth.

Gonzaga is contracting with a counselor of color specifically to support the members of Gonzaga’s BSU in processing the trauma of the Zoom hate attack. The University has also agreed to contract with a second therapist of color to address individual student counseling needs until the hiring process for a full-time therapist, based in Health & Counseling Services, can be completed. This full-time therapist will have expertise in supporting the counseling needs of students of color.

A Town Hall meeting addressing this incident as well as broader issues of race, diversity and inclusion on campus was help on the evening of December 7, 2020. More than 600 students, faculty, staff and alumni participated.

12/8/20 Update: A recording of the Dec. 7 Town Hall webinar is available here.