A Guest Blog on Kenneth Kitts

Kenneth Kitts: Idiot or Egomaniac?

I’m new to the Shoals area and I normally don’t write to blogs. However, the issue with the University of North Alabama's president has left me scratching my head. This “brilliant” college administrator has redefined making a mountain out of a mole hill and has placed the institution and the state in financial jeopardy.

It seems that last year a female student, “Jane Doe,” filed a lawsuit against the university because she believed that she was assaulted by a visiting professor and, according to her Title IX complaint, the institution did not handle things correctly.

These types of suits happen all the time and, based on what even U-North has said, her claims against the professor seem to be reliable. Now, normally, these types of lawsuits tend to fly under the radar of the media and are quickly adjudicated by the affected parties. Simply, either the institution did or did not handle the incident correctly. Either a trial will decide, or the matter will be settled out of court and the institution will learn from its mistakes, if any mistakes were made.

Nevertheless, if an institution is involved in this type of lawsuit, the only words that should come out of the CEO’s mouth is something like “the matter is under litigation, therefore, the institution has no comment.” That’s it, plain and simple. If Kitts had only said what hundreds of other presidents before him have said when asked about a lawsuit, the matter would have gone away in the public eye.

What Kitts actually did either borders on idiocy or egotism. He writes a letter condemning “Jane Doe” as essentially a liar and a money-hungry zealot. What was he thinking? Does UNA not have the availability of professional legal advice before a letter like this was made public? If UNA believes “Jane Doe” was truly forced into some type of inappropriate situation with one of their professors (which they later acknowledged), why belittle and ridicule her?

Well, because of Kitts’ stupid move, what would have been a brief buzz in the local media, now made the websites of major news outlets across the nation including the New York Times and the Washington Post. A few days after the first letter, the institution released a second in which they acknowledge that the professor probably did something inappropriate, so they took care of the matter by removing him.

This second letter caused even more problems for UNA. The media later found out that, while the institution did dismiss him in November, they paid his salary through April. Why? According to Kitts, it was to avoid a lawsuit and embarrassment to the student. However, Isn’t Alabama an “at will” state? This guy they dismissed was a temporary professor. He was not tenured. Therefore, the university could have just sent him on his way. They didn’t, and it smells like UNA is trying to cover up something.

Actually, the university dismissed the professor “without cause” which is something you do when you want to get rid of someone in an “at will” state. By not stating a cause, the institution is less likely to be liable for any clam the dismissed person might have against the institution. However, in the second letter, Kitts said that it was clear the professor acted inappropriately, and he was dismissed because of that action. In other words, the institution just gave a reason through an open letter to the public as to why the professor was dismissed even though the professor was officially dismissed “without cause.” Which reason is the truth?

I think it is clear that the professor must have done something inappropriate to “Jane Doe,” and the university was right in dismissing him. It could also be true that the university did handle the matter correctly regarding "Jane Doe" and may be exonerated. However, now that Kitts decided to open his mouth again, the professor was able to find a crafty attorney to file a multi-million-dollar libel lawsuit against the state because UNA told the media a technical falsehood about him. Again, officially, UNA dismissed him “without cause,” but told the media that he was dismissed because of acting inappropriately.

So, here you have a professor that probably did something wrong to a student, but now, through Kitts' comments, has a huge lawsuit against the institution that he may actually win.

All of this could have been avoided if Kitts had just responded to the media with “the matter is currently under litigation, therefore, the institution has no comment.”

Kitts’ actions clearly show that he is either an idiot who had no idea of what he was doing, or an egomaniac who believes he is the all-knowing and all-powerful puppet master. Either way, his unbridled voice means that the state and the university could lose millions of dollars. I’m left scratching my head wondering why he is still employed.

Clarence Darrow

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Read About Lawsuit Here: The UNA Rapist?

Students March Against Kitts and Shields

Earlier today, between 100 and 150 protestors marched from Harrison Plaza to the central campus of the University of North Alabama. Their theme? "Rape is not a joke."

The protestors, overwhelmingly female, listened to speakers from College Democrats and I am That Girl. One who attended told us the impetus for the march was the university's first statement that attempted to place the onus for the sex attack on "Jane Doe."

Just who wrote that first statement? We would certainly like to know. We initially assumed it was the work of university attorneys; however, several have now told us it was possibly David Shields or Kenneth Kitts himself. Whoever wrote the statement should step forward, but we aren't expecting it.

We're not expecting very much coverage of this march in the TimesDaily either. Of would that be "any coverage?"

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Just how deep should background checks go? Obviously such checks don't go very far at UNA; however, simply looking at what's available about David Dickerson doesn't say much for his character. Okay...you need a jet propulsion engine, you really don't care if the man who gives it to you is a Nazi or not. Right or wrong?

Still, did David Dickerson beginning a relationship with a 16 year-old and later sending the child of that marriage to live in Latvia not raise any flags that maybe something was just a little bit off? 

And why in the name of Roar Lions would the university send four students to Florida with only Dickerson as a chaperone? Sure, it's disappointing to have to cancel a student trip, but much better than letting a student be raped.

Or at least it would be to most universities...

Huge Backlash Against Kenneth Kitts & David Shields?

From Concerned Citizen 101:

Just when you thought it couldn't get much worse... well you haven't been following the actions of the current Administration at the University of North Alabama. With this group it could get worse and has.

So what about the Saturday, August 12th updated statement from UNA about the Jane Doe lawsuit. First it never happened, then all of a sudden it did happen and UNA investigated, saw that the Professor's actions were wrong and so they fired him. What????

Who are these people? Where in the heck are they getting their advice? How do you post a page long statement on August 11th saying the entire lawsuit is a lie. That Jane Doe is just trying to extort money and tarnish UNA's good name. Then the very next day post an entirely new statement saying this did happen but you investigated properly and followed all procedures and protected Jane Doe. UNA posted this August 12th as if the August 11th statement does not exist.

It's called backpedaling. The public is not stupid. The August 11th attack statement does exist and the only reason you removed it was because of the huge backlash and outrage from the public, students and alumni.

So let's talk about Times Daily. What the heck? Talk about insensitive and downright bad timing. Now we all know UNA asked Jennifer Edwards to do this article. But where are the Times Daily Editors? Are you kidding me "What would we lose if UNA wasn't here"? The question everyone should be asking is what was UNA hoping to gain with this article. Was it supposed to be a threat? Or was it supposed to be smoke and mirrors?

So are you saying that because you create jobs and generate all this revenue for the area we should overlook these lawsuits? We should turn a blind eye to the blatant violations of Title IX, numerous complaints of racial discrimination, bullying tactics and very questionable internal controls. Should we be so grateful to UNA that these illegal actions just don't matter? Really UNA. I see you.
 
No, Kitts!!! It doesn't work that way. Let me put it into perspective. It's like someone posted on FB under the comments concerning this article. "It would be like saying to a batter woman ... You should be grateful your abusive husband brings home a check." His check doesn't give him the right to break the law and treat his wife any type of way. And UNA creating jobs for people in the community and generating all this revenue doesn't give it the right to break the law then try to cover it up by any means necessary.

This community is tired of this Administration. I don't recall anyone asking UNA to pack up and leave Florence. However, we are asking and demanding an unbiased investigation into these publicly known lawsuits and other complaints that are not publicly known and get rid of any employee that is guilty. Even Kitts. Heck especially Kitts if he's in the least bit involved.
 
So let's talk about yet another incident that will end up in court if UNA doesn't handle it properly. Given UNA's current track record this will end up in court. I was told today that Dr. Kimberly Greenway who was Director over Student Conduct which includes judicial was involved in a situation where she said some very racially derogatory statements to four African American students who were on dance team. Dr. Greenway ultimately sent the girls to a student conduct board over a video that they posted on social media that a white student on dance team said she found threatening and harsh even though her name was never called and you couldn't prove the video was directed at anyone in particular. The white student said she found the video aggressive. Several people on staff have seen the video and stated it was in no way threatening or aggressive. Some of the statements that Dr. Greenway said to these black students were something like... I don't know what it's like to be a black female thank God. And we will not put up with thuggish behavior. The girls mysteriously didn't make dance team this year.

Here's where bad turned worse. Dr. Greenway supposedly was removed from Student Conduct, but get this. She was made Executive Director and moved to Housing and Residence Life. Sound familiar? It should - that's where Audrey Mitchell, in the Mitchell v UNA lawsuit, now works. Per the Times Daily article and court documents, in February Ms. Mitchell was forced to go back under Student Affairs where David Shields is Vice President. Her office, Housing Facilities Management, was forced to join with Residence Life office which is supervised by Dr. Kevin Jacques. Remember that name? You should; he's named all through Ms. Mitchell's lawsuit.

So Kitts and the staff attorney, Amber Fite-Morgan, thought it would be a good idea to force Audrey Mitchell back under the supervision of David Shields and join offices with Kevin Jacques while there is a very heated lawsuit involving Kitts, David Shields, Kevin Jacques and a lists of others. Then if that wasn't bad enough, move Kimberly Greenway out of Student Conduct for stating to students she's glad she's not a black female and make Ms. Mitchell report to her. Who is a black female???!!!

Kimberly supposedly officially retired July 31st but has told several people Kitts is keeping her on payroll to continue working at UNA.

This is the Twilight Zone, right? Who are these people? Can you imagine Ms. Mitchell's treatment now? If Kimberly was removed from Student Conduct because of questionable actions how does she get a promotion to Executive Director? Is Kitts rewarding discriminatory behavior now? Well UNA allegedly allowed a rapist to continue to work out his contract, so I guess anything is fair game at UNA.

Where is the Board of Trustees? It's clear that Kitts is not capable of running a University.

I agree it's time to drain the swamp but add Dr. Kimberly Greenway to the list. If an ounce of this is true she should be fired immediately. Heck, she retired. Tell her to pack her bag and send her on. Keeping her on payroll just added fuel to the fact that UNA covers up questionable activities and lacks internal controls.

Kitts, David Shields, Kimberly Greenway, Catherine White, who's head of HR, and Kevin Jacques should do UNA as well as the community a favor and have the decency to resign. Let's start calling the Board of Trustees and demand their resignation or termination.


Concerned Citizen 101 

Sending Kenneth Kitts & David Shields Down the Swamp Drain?

Before we present today's guest editorial, we have to ask where is the TimesDaily coverage of this devastating lawsuit against the University of North Alabama? Oh, well, we probably missed it. Wait, we see it now...seven sentences. Now a reader/UNA insider writes:

I wonder if the Jane Doe lawsuit against UNA will finally blow the top off an institution that has more cover-ups than layers of paint on an old house. I don’t want to write a lot here. However, I need to point out some interesting things:

1.       No matter what UNA has tried to do, the Audrey Mitchell lawsuit ain’t going away. Here, you have mainly two, powerful white guys (Drs. Shields and Jacques) who have done everything to intimidate this poor woman. Yet, she will not back down. I think when the court hears all the evidence, it will be clear that Ms. Mitchell was discriminated against.

2.       In the Jane Doe issue, you have a woman who has made a claim that UNA did not adequately follow procedures when she claimed she had been raped by one of their professors. Normally an institution would claim that they can’t comment on a pending case. However, in this instance, they have attacked this poor student. Rather than state that they are looking into the matter, they have raped her again with insults. Again, UNA is clearly trying to intimidate.

3.       I guess my most obvious question is this – What the heck is a professor doing going in a pool or hot tub with his students anyway? I don’t teach, but that seems a little weird and awkward to me. Does UNA condone this behavior?

4.       As to the official statement from UNA, I find it suspicious that there is no name attached to it. While it comes from UNA’s department of communication, there is no signature from Drs. Kitts, Shields, or Amber Fite-Morgan (who, as the diversity officer,  has taken the Elizabeth Warren tactic to use her partial American Indian heritage to prove to people that she a minority – yeah right!). Normally people tend to stand by their strong statements. Kitts is not.  I wonder if someone will be thrown under the bus for writing the response once UNA loses the lawsuit.

5.       UNA claims that there is no evidence of a criminal charge against the professor and that Jane Doe waited “years” before she filed a complaint. UNA, use simple math. According to Jane Doe, the rape happened in 2015. That is a couple of years not “years.” Also, don’t you think if UNA had helped this student and not dismissed her, this scared little girl would have been more likely to have gone to the police? Instead, they tell her to not come to class and not show up in the downtown area. That is intimidation again.

6.       I’ve heard through my colleagues that a big report was done over a year ago on UNA’s minority students and why so many of them are leaving. But the report has never been shared with anybody. Is UNA trying to cover something else up by showing that they intimidate Black students along with Black administrators?

Now, this lawsuit is happening when a ton of people, good people, are leaving or mysteriously disappearing from UNA. Dr. Gafford left. Dr. Thomas Calhoun was fired from his enrollment management position shortly after record fall enrollment. Dr. Hendricks and Clinton Carter left after doing many good things for UNA. The library dean is going. And the registrar, who only worked for UNA for a year, left town to get a job at a two-year school in the state. There are others too numerous to mention.  I wonder if they know something I don’t. I wonder if I need to look elsewhere for a job! Forget Washington. Someone needs to get rid of Kitts, Shields, and others and drain this swamp right here!

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There you have it from a UNA insider. Not pretty, is it? Rape, corruption, and cover-ups never are.