To: Caroline Maun; Stephanie Hartwell; Ingrid Guerra-Lopez
Cc: Ruth Boeder; Sarika Chandra; Ryan Flaherty; Hilary Fox; Jaime Goodrich; Renee Hoogland; Chera Kee;
Michael Liebler; Lisa Maruca; Michael Scrivener; Steven Shaviro; Christopher Susak; Jule Thomas; Joseph
Torok; Thomas Trimble; Clayton Walker; lisa ze winters
Subject: A le)er from English department faculty concerning Barre) Wa)en
Tuesday May 7, 2019
Dear Professor Maun, Dean Hartwell, and Dean Ingrid Guerra-Lopez,
We are wriWng to you with grave concerns about Professor Wa)en and his treatment of graduate students and
colleagues extending over the past 20 years to the present. These concerns have once again come to the surface in
recent weeks, especially in relaWon to his complaints filed against two individual students who are in the English
program now.
Courageous graduate students and faculty have recently made their concerns public, documenWng Wa)en’s behavior
(h)ps://bwrecords2019.home.blog). These statements a)est to the ongoing and longstanding pa)ern of
inappropriate behavior that he has manifested toward many graduate students and other members of the Wayne
State community. Therefore, we believe that Professor Wa)en should not be teaching, advising or mentoring any
graduate students. It would be unethical to allow Professor Wa)en to conWnue to work with graduate students in
any professional capacity, as it would conWnue to expose them to the kinds of harassment documented in the online
accounts.
Given Professor Wa)en’s history of harassment, physical inWmidaWon, bullying and verbal and emoWonal abuse of
graduate students, we the undersigned members of the English Department faculty request that Professor Wa)en’s
status as graduate faculty immediately be revoked.
Moreover, given Professor Wa)en’s history of confrontaWon, aggression, angry outbursts, and threats of retaliaWon,
and given the number of graduate students and faculty who acWvely avoid contact with him because of this history
(several of whom have expressed concerns about their safety), we request that he be reassigned to a new office, one
not located in the Maccabees building. Permirng Professor Wa)en to occupy his current office in the English
department will perpetuate the anxiety and fear documented in the public accounts cited above and will conWnue to
contribute to the sense we have now of an unsafe work environment.
Our department cannot ethically or effecWvely teach and mentor our graduate students so long as Professor Wa)en
is in acWve contact with graduate students. Professor Wa)en’s behavior has had extensive damaging effects on the
personal and professional lives of graduate students in our department. That must stop now.
We urge you to act immediately and decisively.
Sincerely,
Ruth Boeder
Sarika Chandra
Ryan Flaherty
Jonathan Flatley
Hilary Fox
Jaime Goodrich
renee hoogland
Chera Kee
M.L. Liebler
Lisa Maruca
Michael Scrivener
Steven Shaviro
Chris Susak
Jule Thomas
Joe Torok
Thomas Trimble
Clay Walker
Lisa Ze Winters

Page 3 of 4