Thoughts on Academics “Selling Out”

I have thought a lot about academic integrity, and the ways in which some academics choose to “sell” their academic integrity in exchange for access to research participants, social clout, or professional status. This is often seen as a harmless “exchange,” but it has real consequences for people outside of academia, people who often don’t recognize that someone has put their academic integrity on sale.

So, some time ago, I emailed Dr. Jeanette Harder about her process for vetting places she recommends in her book, as it is well-known that at least 1 of them violates mandated reporting requirements while “housing” men who admitted to sexually assaulting their children.

Dr. Harder, by the way, is a licensed social worker who teaches social work students. Not only does she claim to support mandated reporting, she is a mandated reporter herself. She never responded to my initial email. Maybe it got lost in the ether?

Seeing her scheduled to present at the Young Center Amish Conference with Christopher Sarno, a defense attorney that specializes in defending those accused of sex crimes – and those charged with failure to report – tells me all I need to know about why she did not respond.

Further, the presentation was going to be on the role of Plain CCIs in responding to child sexual abuse. So, an attorney defending those accused of sex crimes and those accused of not fulfilling their responsibility of reporting said crimes, was going to present with the head of a children and youth agency and a social worker on CCIs and child sexual abuse.

While the U.S. legal system guarantees the right to an attorney, the fact that the head of a children and youth agency and a social worker are choosing to present with someone who advertises they defend sex offenders – and those who fail to report – speaks volumes to their priorities in CSA cases.

NO ONE from Children and Youth should be presenting with someone who puts this out on their website. NO ONE with a background in social work who actually understands the reality of child sexual abuse should either.

The session Dr. Harder planned with Mr. Sarno was removed from the conference schedule (with no explanation). I hope she realized the conflict between her expressed values and his in regards to child sexual abuse.

However, it is important to note, Dr. Harder did respond to a second email I sent her. Sadly, she admitted that she didn’t really vet the facilities she recommends in one of her books. She acknowledges that, perhaps, she should have put a disclaimer to that effect so that people would know her recommendations were not based on any type of investigation into their effectiveness. But, I’d like to ask you to reflect on the fact that an academic, one who is responsible for the training of future social workers, recommended facilities – unlicensed facilities – that she had not truly investigated. Rather than acknowledge the harm caused by that, she deflected the responsibility of “program evaluation” onto others. She again chose to side with institutions and leaders who downplay the seriousness of child sexual abuse and the need for specialized treatment for those who sexually abuse a child. She chose NOT to use her skills in program evaluation (which is listed as one of her areas of expertise) to recommend places that were effective at treating sexual offenders. One might wonder why that is…