Bob Jones University

Overview

A 2014 independent investigation by GRACE (Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment) — commissioned by Bob Jones University itself — concluded that BJU for decades responded to student reports of sexual abuse and rape ‘with woeful ignorance of the law’ and a campus culture that ‘blames women and girls for any abuse they suffer.’ The investigation drew on 924 survey responses, 116 interviews, and testimony from 54 self-identified abuse survivors.

Description

In 2013, BJU retained GRACE to investigate handling of sexual-abuse complaints. The 301-page final report, released December 2014, documented that counselors — most notably chief BJU counselor Jim Berg — responded to rape and abuse disclosures by meeting with students for only 1–3 sessions and interrogating them about their ‘moral life’: whether they had been drinking or using drugs when assaulted, whether they watched pornography, whether they indulged in sexual fantasies. The report described ‘a near-complete lack of training in psychology and trauma counseling best practices’ and an overarching culture of victim blaming. BJU President Steve Pettit issued a public apology, stating ‘I would like to sincerely and humbly apologize to those who felt they did not receive from us genuine love, compassion, understanding, and support after suffering sexual abuse or assault.’ A decade after the report, religion journalists documented that survivors ‘fear too little has changed,’ with BJU continuing to use the same biblical-counseling method the report critiqued and retaining faculty members the report said promoted harmful practices.