Hello Baylor Lariat Staff,

Thank you for your timely and appropriate response on the media coverage, etc., as a result of the allegations posted against the university. As an alumnus, I’m embarrassed when I hear more news coverage about what is NOT happening at the university as a result of the Pepper-Hamilton review, partially due to the continued light shined on athletics and the disdainful response (or lack thereof) of the regents.

I will always be proud of the education I received at Baylor. I look back on my college and graduate school years fondly. However, my nostalgia and pride will never, ever be more important than the fear and injustice any one student has had to endure as a result of the irresponsible actions and reactions of the parties involved in each case. Now is not the time to focus on that. We must continue to fight for widespread change and focus on these victims through embarrassment and anger. We must ask for the university to continue its change and re-focus on what is truly important: the safety, livelihood and equal treatment of each student regardless of their athletic affiliation. Perhaps, with this change, the university will re-focus its pride on what I valued as an incoming freshman in 2005: Innovative research, the outstanding education of its students, and the creation of a place where all feel welcome.

Monike Garabieta, Class of 2009