Sexual assault allegations made at Crossroads School in Santa Monica

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Crossroads School for Arts & Sciences – the exclusive Santa Monica academy where tuition ranges from $ 38,972 for K classes – $ 5 to $ 45,761 for 6 to 12 – was forced to respond to a series last week disturbing allegations, including one of a high school student who claims that she and 17 of her classmates were sexually assaulted by a classmate, and it is unclear what, if anything, was done to this topic.

In a Nov. 9 email to parents obtained by Los Angeles, school principal Bob Riddle wrote that Crossroads is “aware of a voice memo emailed to some members of our community yesterday. evening by a high school student … [who] said she, along with 17 others, had been sexually assaulted and harassed by a Carrefour student.

Although the school admits it is aware of the charges, it appears the administration’s response – at least as of November 9 – left the alleged victims confused by unanswered questions.

Riddle noted that the accuser “stated that, based on the accusations of six Crossroads students who had been injured, the student was ultimately suspended and never returned to school. The high school student expressed his frustration that the school does not verify whether the student has been expelled or has chosen not to return.

Riddle explained that Crossroads must consider the privacy rights of students as well as their safety.

“The challenge we face in every disciplinary situation is balancing the need for confidentiality with the need for resolution for everyone involved,” he wrote. “We will contact the student and their family to continue the conversation and hear their concerns. “

Additionally, the Crossroads memo refers to a different set of complaints described in a November 3 letter written by two college students regarding possible recent online harassment.

“We are in the process of identifying the students who created and distributed the grade eight ranking list,” the November 9 email continued. “We are working closely with these students and their families to find out more about what happened. In the meantime, due to the seriousness of the offense, the students have been suspended pending further investigation. “

Middle school students are also troubled by several “ship” TikTok “accounts in which seventh-graders speculate on real or imagined relationships between classmates.”

The Crossroads memo reads, “We also identified the students behind these accounts,” but points out that the school has not uncovered more serious complaints related to these accounts.

“Although we have had many meaningful conversations with students over the past few days about issues of disrespectful language and sexism, no student has reported being threatened with rape, nor of another student memorizing their path. back or next. “

The memo assures parents that “our investigation remains ongoing” and urges: “Any student who has been the target of threats or harassment of any kind is strongly encouraged to speak to a trusted adult on campus in order to that the school can take the appropriate measures “.

It ends with a promise “to educate students on issues such as sexual misconduct, consent, online bullying and micro-aggression” while continuing to “encourage open and honest dialogue among students; provide support to those most affected; and, by the end of the week, determine the appropriate consequences for the students responsible for these serious violations of our School Code of Conduct.

It is not known if further action has been taken by the end of this week, and Crossroads did not return our request for comment.

While all teachers, teacher assistants and most other certified employees of public and private schools in California are required by law to report incidents of child abuse, even those perpetrated by other students, no reports of this guy was never done.

Santa Monica Police Department Public Information Officer Rudy Flores said in an email in Los Angeles on Wednesday: It’s up to us to report these incidents. If anyone would like to report any of the incidents, they can contact us at 310-458-8491. “

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