$12.5M settlement reached in UNCSA sexual assault lawsuit

A 2021 lawsuit filed against the University of North Carolina School of the Arts alleging years-long sexual misconduct has been settled for $12.5 million.

The settlement agreement announced Friday ends litigation filed by 65 UNCSA alumni.

The plaintiffs alleged sexual abuse and misconduct at the UNCSA from the 1970s to the 1990s, according to a statement released by the UNC System and the UNCSA on Friday.

Over four years, the UNC System will pay $10 million to the survivors and UNCSA will pay $2.5 million.

“This resolution marks the end of a decades-long journey for these former UNCSA students,” said Lisa Lanier, the attorney for the claimants. “It takes tremendous courage to pursue claims borne of past trauma and it has been our privilege to represent them in this process to bring institutional accountability for the inexcusable conduct to which they were subjected. The university worked diligently with us to reach this settlement, acknowledging that it was time to make amends for the past.”

The lawsuits alleged that UNCSA officials did not act as faculty members sexually assaulted students over decades.

“Though this resolution cannot heal the wounds of the past, it is my deep hope that through it, the survivors who came forward feel our commitment to listening, acknowledging and doing right by them,” said UNCSA Chancellor Brian Cole. “This has without a doubt been a dark time for UNCSA as we came to terms with accounts of sexual abuse, and we honor the courage it took for these alumni to share their experiences. It has always been our intent to do what we can to reconcile with the past in a manner consistent with our values, and with compassion and empathy for survivors. I am personally devastated that anyone on this campus would have experienced abuse, and commit to doing all that we can to continually bolster an environment of safety and trust at UNCSA.”

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