Firm Accountability for Redeemer University
If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church… (Matthew 18:17)
MY REQUEST TO THE REDEEMER UNIVERSITY CHURCH BODY AND CRC CHURCH FOR HELP
To the Church that makes up the Redeemer University community (alumni, students and families who are paying clients, staff, and those connected through voluntary membership or other means) and the Christian Reformed Church with which Redeemer University directly associates itself,
My name is Lindsay Walton, I am an alumna (2003) of Redeemer University (in Ancaster, Ontario) who has maintained multiple connection points with the school and its community after graduation. As a result, some complex and concerning events have come to my attention which I have been unable to resolve with Redeemer’s leadership directly. I became more directly involved recently after others before me tried to problem-solve with the school only to report feelings of being stonewalled, lied to, or threatened.
It is my experience that good people are capable of creating complex systems that have unintended negative outcomes and I absolutely believe that is the case here. However, the magnitude of the negative outcomes of the system currently in place and the way the leadership is handling having concerns brought to their attention requires immediate intervention.
The concerns in the realms of business management, communications, and health & safety are not new, the school has had the opportunity to address them over the years but have not yet fully done so, and the current path the school is on is so destructive that it can’t reasonably be permitted to continue in this manner as it has resulted in an increased risk of suicide for students and staff.
Dealing With Sin in the Church
15 “If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. 16 But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ 17 If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
Matthew 18:15-17
If the school will not take reasonable constructive action to address these risks then a final step is suggested in Matthew 18:17 after telling the Church. I have provided Redeemer with deadlines of October 29, 2021, and December 31, 2021, for addressing critical items that have a direct or peripheral impact on suicide risk at which point I will either be able to confirm for the Church that the items have been resolved and share that progress here on the Updates page, or I will be initiating a form of government-based accountability available to concerned citizens knowing that by doing so it ultimately may lead to the closure of the school. I hope very much to not reach that point.
So many people have such wonderful experiences at Redeemer that the concept of the school culture having a dark side seems unfathomable. However, a dark side does exist that has resulted in students, alumni, and staff requiring counseling to recover from their time at the school. The causes of their distress and trauma I would akin to rot within the school’s culture that, like rot within a tree, threatens the integrity and longevity of the institution if not dealt with. All other attempts to follow the model of problem-solving outlined in Matthew 18 of connecting one-on-one with David Zietsma (Interim President) and with a witness have been unsuccessful. Vice President Hank de Jong was added to the conversation as part of the Interim President’s communications team and I reached out to the Board Chair, Board of Governors, Senate, and Student Senate with zero response from any of these four parties.
The Interim President chose to not engage in a requested Zoom call (online face-to-face platform) to discuss my concerns and then outright asked me to stop contacting the leadership even though I noted the concerns included violations of provincial and federal laws and increased risk of suicide at the school. I suggested inviting Redeemer’s legal counsel into the conversation assuming the counsel would want to know about ways in which the school was being left wide open to lawsuits if the leadership didn’t start addressing systemic concerns and engaging with various concerned parties. If Redeemer had good counsel they would walk the leaders through how to take constructive action that would reduce unnecessary legal issues.
Instead, the leadership took statements out of context from my communications and used them as justification for suggesting I was threatening to close the school if the school wouldn’t use my professional services and that was grounds for not speaking with me any further. This suggests either intentional word-sparring or a fundamental failure in critical reading skills, and absolute failure to gather more information about the problem they were dealing with. We think someone threatened to close the school and they’re suggesting we’re breaking laws and creating suicide risks? Tell them to go away, that will fix it!. The school then had their lawyer issue me a cease and desist letter that also took statements out of context to threaten me with defamation. My understanding from Redeemer’s governance manual outlining roles and responsibilities is that the Interim President would have been in the driver’s seat for these decisions rather than the Board or Senate.
The Interim President and lawyer have both said I am claiming to represent people without having identified who those people are and without the school having received authorization for me to speak on anyone’s behalf. I do not claim to be formally representing anyone and people I have spoken with have actively indicated they are afraid of the leadership so there is zero way I’m giving names. Instead, I have been attempting to bring systemic problems to the leadership’s attention and provide solutions for consideration so that constructive action can be taken. Having reviewed the existence of ongoing concerns across multiple people holding the office of President, I have significant concerns that Redeemer’s legal counsel plays a key role in fueling toxic undercurrents which have remained consistent despite leadership changes.
If you have been issued a document by Redeemer’s legal counsel that has made you feel afraid of legal repercussions for speaking up about a concern or isolated because the words “Private and Confidential” have made you feel like you can’t talk to others about a problem, you are invited to contact me to know you are not alone. I will listen and we can discuss if any legal communications you have received are appropriate for sharing on this website to increase transparency about what is happening. They did it to me so I suspect there may be others. Just email contact@firmaccountabilityforredeemeruniversity.ca.
Redeemer’s leadership and legal counsel have been informed that any further legal communications sent to me will not be considered private or confidential and that I will share them publicly as I see fit. Any such communications will be shared on this website in full. They have also been informed that by taking my statements out of context they are misrepresenting me which could be detrimental to my reputation which would make them guilty of defamation and they were encouraged to go and correct any misunderstandings they may have contributed to immediately.
Redeemer’s leadership has utterly shut down communication and the increased risk to student and staff health and wellbeing remains. Still trying to keep the matter as private as possible, I contacted the Christian Reformed Church (the central denomination rather than an individual church) to ask if there were any support resources (ex. a mediator) available through the denomination to assist. I was informed that Redeemer University identifies as Christian Reformed but is not actually a member of the denomination and therefore is an independent body that is not under the authority or supportive wing of the Christian Reformed Church.
If you are wondering why I am pursuing resolving this matter in this manner when a new Presidential hire is on the horizon and I could simply take the concerns up with them, the first reason is that I’ve spoken with students who were afraid to return to Redeemer this September and that’s not the kind of thing you wait to take action on.
The second reason is that a new President being hired is exactly why intervention is needed now. The Redeemer and CRC church bodies need to speak up now to say if they agree with what is happening at the school currently and if a President should be hired who can do more of the same, or do things need to be done differently? The qualifications and experience we need in a President if we wish to be on a different track may not be the qualifications and experience being looked for now. The person chosen as President is entering office at a critical time when Redeemer is preparing to wade deeper into legal waters for the wrong reasons and the school may be on the precipice of disaster if it does not bring on board a President who excels in de-escalating, collaborative, face-to-face problem-solving. It isn’t that legal counsel and law have no place at Redeemer, but they absolutely should not be wielded as tools against its own community, rather as tools to equip and protect it (for example, the new President is entering office during formative times with vaccine laws for educational institutions being explored).
And so I am reaching out to you, the Church associated with Redeemer and with which Redeemer associates itself, asking for the opportunity to share with you The Bigger Story of what is happening at the school (as best as I can piece it together) and to ask for your help calling on Redeemer’s Board of Governors, Senate, and Student Senate to take action.
HOW TO INTERVENE
Submit your thoughts in writing to Redeemer’s Board of Governors, Senate, and Student Senate by email or written letter to share your concerns and what action you hope to see taken (contact information provided at the bottom of this page).
You can read The Bigger Story to better understand the context and complexity of the issues.
You can read my Letter to the Board, Senate, and Student Senate where I have outlined the eleven items I am deeply concerned about and would like to see immediate constructive action taken on. I have identified items that I believe warrant more firm accountability with deadlines to reduce suicide risk at the school. If any of the concerns resonate with you, you are welcome to copy and paste text to use as a template for your own communication, adjusting it so that your thoughts and voice are heard.
NOTE: Please do not rely on other people sending in their concerns thinking “they’ve already got it covered”, instead, constructively contribute what you think is a priority and any proposed solutions which helps with brainstorming to achieve the best outcomes possible together as a community and team.
HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR CONCERNS
Having read what I’ve shared on this website, what do you want Redeemer to hear from you?
Please address the beginning of your communications to the Redeemer University Board of Governors, Senate, and Student Senate. When sending your email, the Senate does not have its own email. The email for the Board of Governors (which no longer seems to appear on Redeemer’s website) is bog@redeemer.ca and the Student Senate President can be reached at pres.senate@redeemer.ca.
If you prefer mail over email you can write to:
Attn: Redeemer University Board of Governors, Senate, and Student Senate; c/o Redeemer University; 777 Garner Road East; Ancaster, Ontario; L9K 1J4.
I would recommend mailing three copies of your letter, one to each body.
If you would like to ensure a copy of your communication has been kept on file outside of Redeemer’s hands, you can cc (please do not bcc) contact@firmaccountabilityforredeemeruniversity.ca.
If you have noted any part of the website is confusing, a link is not working correctly, or you are aware of a correction that should be considered please let me know at contact@firmaccountabilityforredeemeruniversity.ca.
A Final Note To Current Staff and Students
You are just starting a new school year with all the excitement and nervousness that can go with that. I wish the timing were different for the launch of this website, but this is how things have played out because of the timing of the Theatre and French program closures announcement and how problem-solving attempts with the leadership have played out over the Summer. I wish you an incredible start to your school year at an amazing school and encourage you to look for constructive ways that you can make this the most powerful year in Redeemer’s history yet where every staff member and student stood as equal, where the idea of Everyone being Wonderfully made really hit home, and where not one person felt alone while navigating their unique life journey. God bless you all.