At the time he was hired at USC, Mike Bohn was under investigation for his conduct at Cincinnati amid rising complaints from his staff, according to interviews with 5 current and former Cincinnati employees as well as Title IX documents seen by The Times.
We’re offering L.A. Times subscribers special access to our best journalism. Thank you for your support.“There is no opportunity for the Respondent to answer, as he departed before there was an opportunity for the [Office of Equal Opportunity & Access] to address the concerns with him,” the summary of the investigation notes reads.last week, a day after The Times asked Bohn and USC about internal criticism over his management and conduct.
Bohn has declined multiple Times requests for responses to detailed questions about allegations raised by Cincinnati staff members. None of the investigations resulted in a record of public discipline against Bohn. One of the women, who asked not to be identified to avoid adverse repercussions on her career, went forward with filing a complaint against a supervisor who reported to Bohn. She claimed “discriminatory, hostile, retaliatory, and/or disrespectful and unprofessional conduct alleged to violate University policies,” according to a copy of the official complaint viewed by The Times.
The letter states McGraw told investigators she confronted Bohn about a pay disparity between her and two male staff members who were splitting duties of a departing administrator. Bohn, she said, responded that “it’s not an age or gender thing.” She said he asked her to sign notes at the end of the meeting indicating the pay dispute was resolved and that she would not file a complaint with the university. She told investigators she refused to sign it.
By 2019, some female staff members in Cincinnati’s athletics department had begun to meet discreetly, not only to discuss how to handle their concerns with Bohn and the department, but also to offer each other emotional support.That woman, who filed the Title IX complaint naming Bohn, told The Times that the environment in the department was so tense that the women sometimes left their meet-ups one by one, so as to not arouse suspicion from Bohn or others in the department.
Hatcher, who is Black, had been promoted into her current fundraising role by Bohn soon after his arrival in 2014. But, according to investigation notes obtained via a records request, their relationship “became more contentious as there were a number of unsettling interactions she experienced with [Bohn].”
Hatcher and Rosfeld told Title IX investigators that Bohn previously accused Hatcher of “playing the race card” after she raised concerns about the lack of minority employees being promoted. Both told investigators that they heard Bohn make “disrespectful comments” about the race of Cincinnati president, Dr. Neville Pinto. . The report did not specify the comments Bohn was accused of making.
The other female staff member who filed an official Title IX complaint said she also left in part because of Bohn’s treatment of her.
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