Anthony Azenabor: UW-Milwaukee Student Journalists Deserve Answers [EDITORIAL]

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On March 4, 2019, Media Milwaukee student journalists initially reported that UW-Milwaukee Professor Anthony Azenabor was facing allegations of sexually assaulting one of his PhD student advisees in the basement of Enderis Hall. 

The next development in the story came shortly thereafter, when a Media Milwaukee student journalist armed with a list of questions was sent on to the university’s public relations department by officials in the UWM Police Department and the Office of Equity and Diversity Services, which handles sexual assault and harassment complaints against employees. University PR spokeswoman, Michelle Johnson, told the student journalist to file open records requests for most of the questions. The same day, student journalists filed the open records requests, which were ultimately denied. 

According to the National Freedom of Information Coalition, the Wisconsin Open Records Law is a series of laws designed to guarantee that the public has access to public records of government bodies at all levels. NFOIC states that Wisconsin defines record as any document, regardless of physical form, that “has been created or is being kept by” an agency.

UWM should strive to be transparent with its student journalists, especially in regards to questions about Azenabor, in a timely manner, and as soon as it has factual evidence and won’t compromise an investigation.

These are the questions the student journalists posed about the Azenabor allegations on March 4, 2019 to Johnson, whose title is Sr. Director of Integrated Marketing & Communications:

  • What date did this accuser or anyone else come forward to UWM about the allegations? In other words, what date did UWM first learn of the accusations and by whom and in what manner?
  • Was a complaint filed with EDS (Equity and Diversity Services) and on what date and by whom in the case of the first accuser (referred to in the complaint as (initials given)? 
  • What date did the campus police learn about the accusations and from whom? 
  • When’s the last date that the professor taught courses or supervised students?
  • What was the EDS finding in this case and on what date was it reached? 
  • What was the Provost finding in this case and on what date was it reached? 
  • Who informed UWM police and on what date were they informed? 
  • As to the second student mentioned at the bottom of the criminal complaint, did EDS launch an investigation?
  • What was the date it was launched, and what was the date and finding of EDS and the provost in that case?
  • How many complaints overall (and for what) has the university received, formal or informal, against Anthony Azenabor since his time of hire? We have a separate open records request seeking those actual documents. This question is merely for the aggregate number.

While UWM is a public institution and should ideally be transparent with the student body, it could be argued that the university is a business looking to brand itself, protect its reputation, and recruit prospective students. Although that may be true, there is something to be said about a university acting with honesty and integrity in regards to issues with faculty and staff. UWM has made information gathering difficult for student journalists in the past, especially when reporting on sexual assault and harassment on campus approximately one year ago. 

As Azenabor was removed from the classroom in November, and it is now April, and the case was already charged, UWM should begin to answer some of the questions posed by Media Milwaukee student journalists rather than sending them down the open records rabbit hole as it has done in the past. 

This editorial was based on a discussion by a JAMS 504 editorial board.