On the night of Feb. 17, the Chancellor of the California State University system Joseph I. Castro  resigned from his position amidst mounting accusations coming from his former position at Fresno State University.

An article by Kenny Jacoby for USA Today broke the story about multiple instances of sexual assualt cases being mishandled by  ex-chancellor during his time as president at Fresno State. 

When the story broke on February 3, countless students and faculty called on him to resign for weeks until he put out a statement the night of Feb. 17, detailing his departure from the position effective immediately.

In his statement to the Board of Trustees, Castro stated, “I have been honored to serve the California State University for more than eight years, including as its eighth chancellor, and the decision to resign is the most difficult of my professional life. While I disagree with many aspects of recent media reports and the ensuing commentary, it has become clear to me that resigning at this time is necessary so that the CSU can maintain its focus squarely on its educational mission and the impactful work yet to be done.” 

After the statement was released, the Board immediately went forward with a plan to find a replacement. Steve Relyea will be serving  as acting chancellor until a decision has been made. 

While many were overjoyed Castro  stepped down, one man, Rami Zwebti, continued to feel sour about the whole thing. Zwebti was one of many students who wanted to see change concerning the Chancellor’s position; so he decided to do something about it. 

When the news first broke, he demanded change so he went to Change.org and created a petition to try and get his message out there. His message was clear: Lamas’ victims will be traumatized for years to come, and every day that Castro spent in the chancellors office was another day that the CSU system was telling sexual assault survivors that they didn’t matter. They’re an object, and they don’t matter at all; that is the precedent Zwebti felt was being set. 

In an interview with Zwetbi, he discussed both Frank Lamas, the professor who had received the allegations and Castro, who was at the time, the president of Fresno State. He wanted them both to know that they were equally involved. Sweeping these allegations under the rug, which had been consistent in Lamas’ employment since his first week at the school, was a seriously bad look on Castro’s part. He said “He [Lamas] is a predator, he made people feel uncomfortable, and if Castro paid any attention to all that, the trauma wouldn’t exist. While Lamas was the predator, Castro was the enabler.” 

The Board of Trustees has released a plan going forward which includes a revaluation of their policies with Title IX and being on the “forefront of Title IX innovation, accountability, and response.” This policy as well as others moving forward will throw the CSU system into a Institutional Response Group to conduct a statewide investigation to provide insights, recommendations, and resources that will help the State University system take a positive step forward.

As many celebrate the departure of the Chancellor, there are still some looking for answers. Rami and other students believe that it’s the start of holding Castro accountable but not necessarily the way for the CSU system to make amends. Moving forward, the CSU system’s plan will implement positive changes that will reinforce that California State Universities policy against sexual assault.