DIVISION OF HUMAN RESOUCES
OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE, EQUAL OPPORTUNITY AND AFFIRMATIVE ACTION

To:

Dr. Jane Dressler, Interim Director, School of Music

From:

Melissa Dinsio MD, Compliance Investigator
Office of Compliance, Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action (EOAA)

Date:

June 21, 2019

Subject:

Office of Compliance, EOAA Investigation Summary Report:
Ms. Molly Ross, Complainant vs Dr. Jesse Leyva, Respondent

Allegations:
On March 21, 2019, Ms. Molly Ross, student, filed a complaint with the Office of Compliance, Equal
Opportunity and Affirmative Action alleging that Dr. Jesse Leyva, Associate Professor, School of
Music, retaliated against her due to her association with
, student, who filed a
sexual harassment complaint against Dr. Leyva on March 12, 2019. Specifically, she believes that Dr.
Leyva created Instagram posts intended to intimidate her. Ms. Ross believes that these behaviors are
in violation of university policy 5-16 (E) (3) regarding retaliation.
Scope of investigation:
? Reviewed the complaint filed by Ms. Ross on March 12, 2019
? Provided the interim measure of a different supervisor for Ms. Ross in the band office on
April 18, 2019
? Interviewed Ms. Molly Ross, student, on March 18, 2019 and April 22, 2019
? Interviewed
on March 12, 2019, March 18, 2019, March 21, 2019, April 22,
2019 and May 28, 2019
? Interviewed Mr. Michael Greene on March 18, 2019 and April 22, 2019
? Interviewed Dr. Leyva on April 15, 2019, April 23, 2019, and June 13, 2019
? Interviewed Dr. Jane Dressler, Interim Director, School of Music, on April 17, 2019
? Reviewed a statement of response from Dr. Leyva on April 18, 2019
? Interviewed
, student, on April 22, 2019 and April 23, 2019
? Interviewed
, student, on April 24, 2019
? Interviewed
, former student, on April 25, 2019
? Interviewed Dr. John Franklin, former Professor, School of Music, on April 24, 2019
? Interviewed Dr. Jamie Lipton, non-affiliate, on April 26, 2019
? Interviewed Ms. Mary Kate McNally, former student, on May 1, 2019
? Interviewed Ms. Noa Even, Assistant Professor, School of Music, on May 13, 2019
Molly Ross, Complainant vs. Jesse Leyva, Respondent
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Interviewed Dr. Ralph Lorenz, former Director, School of Music, on May 13, 2019
Interviewed Mr. Bobby Selvaggio, Assistant Professor, School of Music, on May 14, 2019
Interviewed Mr. Tim Culver, Associate Professor, School of Music, on May 14, 2019
Interviewed Ms. Danna Sundet, Associate Professor, School of Music, on May 17, 2019
Interviewed Ms. Elizabeth Root, Instructor, School of Music, on May 17, 2019
Interviewed Dr. Andrew Shahriari, Associate Professor, School of Music, on May 20, 2019
Interviewed
, student, School of Music, on May 20, 2019
Interviewed
, former student, on May 23, 2019
Interviewed Ms. Mary Linger, Sr. Manager, Academic Budget, College of the Arts, on May 23,
2019 and May 29, 2019
Reviewed a police report filed by
on May 28, 2019
Interviewed Ms. Janine Tiffe, Assistant Professor, School of Music, on June 3, 2019
Interviewed Dr. Athena Salaba, Associate Professor, School of Information, on June 4, 2019

Investigative Review:
On March 12, 2019, Ms. Ross, a student who worked in the band office and was supervised by Dr.
Leyva, filed a formal complaint with the Office of Compliance, EOAA alleging that Dr. Leyva retaliated
against her for her association with
, who filed a sexual harassment complaint against
Dr. Leyva on March 12, 2019. She stated that on March 13, 2019 at approximately 1:00 a.m., Dr.
Leyva posted on his Instagram a meme with the saying, "When poisonous people come disguised as
friends & family," and with the caption, "I see you MLMJ__." Ms. Ross believes that the capital
letters in the captions of the posts are the initials of her,
, Mr. Greene and Dr. Franklin.
Immediately after posting that meme, Dr. Leyva posted a second Instagram meme saying, "The worst
kind of hurt is betrayal, because it means someone was willing to hurt you just to make themself [sic]
feel better," with the caption, "MRLEMG."
Ms. Ross explained that there was a controversy at that time in the School of Music regarding the
non-renewal of Dr. Franklin's contract and the role that Dr. Leyva played in the decision not to renew
that contract. She further explained that she,
and Mr. Greene are very close friends
and that they had been some of the few vocal and ardent supporters of Dr. Franklin. She also stated
that Mr. Greene was with
when she filed her sexual harassment complaint, and that
while they were filing the complaint, another student,
, called Mr. Greene. Mr. Greene
told
that
was filing a complaint against Dr. Leyva. Ms. Ross believes that
told others in the School of Music about the complaint, rumors started about the
complaint, and those rumors quickly got back to Dr. Leyva. Accordingly, Ms. Ross alleged that the
capital letters in the captions of Dr. Leyva's Instagram posts mean "Michael,
, Molly, John" and
"Molly Ross,
Michael Greene," respectively.
Ms. Ross,
Compliance, EOAA.

and Mr. Green provided the relevant Instagram posts to the Office of

Dr. Leyva was interviewed on three occasions and he denied retaliating against Ms. Ross. He
admitted that he made the Instagram posts and that the capital letters in the captions of the posts
were initials of people by whom he felt betrayed. However, he denied that the initials were those of
Ms. Ross,
, Mr. Green, Dr. Franklin, or anyone else associated with Kent State
University. Dr. Leyva explained that the initials in the caption under the first post represented
Mandy, a romantic interest; Leyvas, his father's side of the family; Monica, a romantic interest; and
Molly Ross, Complainant vs. Jesse Leyva, Respondent
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Jesse, his father. Additionally, Dr. Leyva explained that the initials in the second Instagram post
represented Mandy; Rob, a former colleague and supervisor; Leyvas; Ed, a mentor; Monica; and
Gary, a mentor.
Dr. Leyva further explained that he had seen Mandy's Facebook feed and realized she only wanted to
sell him vitamins; he has had irregular contact with his father's family and he wants to make amends
for that; Monica had rejected him; he has not had any contact with his father and he wants to mend
that relationship; he feels Rob lied to him about a professional opportunity; and he feels that Ed and
Gary did not give him good professional advice. He stated that in the late evening of March 12, 2019
and the early morning of March 13, 2019, he felt the need to express his "failure, betrayal, and
sadness," while "referencing those involved." He said that it was coincidental that the initials were
those of the students involved in the filing of
complaint and that the initials in the
second post were aligned in the order of those students' first and last names.
Moreover, Dr. Leyva stated that at the time he made the Instagram posts, he did not know .
had filed a complaint against him. He admitted that he knew there was "drama" in the
School of Music and he assumed the "drama" was regarding the non-renewal of Dr. Franklin's
contract.
was interviewed on four occasions and stated that Mr. Greene was with her on March
12, 2019 when she filed her sexual harassment complaint against Dr. Leyva. She stated that while
they were in Williamson House delivering the complaint,
called Mr. Greene. She further
stated that she gave Mr. Greene permission to tell
that she was filing a sexual
harassment complaint against Dr. Leyva.
Mr. Greene stated that he was with
when she filed her sexual harassment complaint.
He also stated that
called him while they were at Williamson House and he told her that
was filing a complaint against Dr. Leyva.
stated that Mr. Greene did tell her on March 12, 2019 that
was filing a
sexual harassment complaint against Dr. Leyva and that she discussed the complaint with others in
the School of Music that day. Additionally, she said that Ms. Ross,
and Mr. Greene are
"tight-knit friends" and that all three "are always mentioned together in rumors" about Dr. Franklin.
, a member of the Wind Ensemble, stated that on March 12, 2019, "everyone" in the
School of Music knew that
had filed "something" against Dr. Leyva, but she thought it
was a criminal charge with the police. She also said that people in the School of Music were asking
each other on March 12, 2019, "Are you on Leyva's side?"
None of the witnesses interviewed said that they ever heard Dr. Leyva mention the sexual
harassment complaint, and none of the witnesses provided additional relevant information.
Applicable Policies:
University policy 5-16 (E) (3) states:
Retaliation against persons who file complaints or cooperate with the investigation of a
complaint of discrimination or harassment is a violation of this policy as well as the law, and
Molly Ross, Complainant vs. Jesse Leyva, Respondent
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is strictly prohibited. Overt or covert acts of reprisal, interference, restraint, penalty or
intimidation against any person for exercising rights under this policy will be subject to
appropriate and prompt disciplinary and remedial action.
Findings:
After thorough review and careful consideration, the Office of Compliance, EOAA finds that Dr. Leyva
did retaliate against Ms. Ross by making the referenced Instagram posts.
Although Dr. Leyva has denied that the Instagram posts were about the students involved in the filing
of
sexual harassment complaint, the timing of the posts merely hours after
filed her complaint, in conjunction with the involved students' initials in the posts and the
alignment of the students' initials in the order of their first and last names, is too coincidental to be
plausible. Additionally, the pervasive rumors of the filing of
complaint indicate that
Dr. Leyva likely knew of the complaint when he made the Instagram posts. Accordingly, this office
finds by a preponderance of the evidence that Dr. Leyva violated university policy 5-16 (E)(3).
Recommendations:
The recommendations of this office are as follows:
1. Dr. Leyva will be suspended for 30 days without pay; and
2. Dr. Leyva will participate in and successfully complete either facilitator-led or online training
offered by the Division of Human Resources Training and Development Department and the
Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. The trainings will include:
a. Ethics and Code of Conduct
b. Prevent Bullying in the Workplace
c. Microaggressions
Dr. Leyva must complete these trainings before July 31, 2020. Contact Renee Romine in the
Division of Human Resources at mromine@kent.edu or 330-672-0898, and Natasha Curtis in
the Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at ncurtis1@kent.edu or 330-672-2442.
This concludes the investigation by the Office of Compliance, Equal Opportunity and Affirmative
Action. For questions, please contact this office at aa eeo@kent.edu or 330-672-2038.
CC:

Todd Diacon, Provost
Sue Averill, Associate Provost
F. Jack Witt, Vice President, Division of Human Resources
David Ochmann, Associate Vice President and Deputy General Counsel, Office of General
Counsel
Bonita Prewitt, Gender Equity Director and Title IX Coordinator, Office of Compliance, EOAA
Molly Ross, Complainant and Student
Jesse Leyva, Respondent and Associate Professor, School of Music

Molly Ross, Complainant vs. Jesse Leyva, Respondent
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