NKU paid former worker $200K to avoid sex lawsuit

As a former NKUer, I think everyone should be fired and the need to start over, bad administration from the top down.

As a former NKUer, I think everyone should be fired and the need to start over, bad administration from the top down.

 

I'm asking this because I don't know...not trying to stir the pot. From the outside looking in, it looks to me like they had a bad apple (Eaton) who fooled a bunch of people at the University who thought he was a great guy while he was doing some really bad things. He is in jail now. Why do you want a housecleaning? Is there more going on besides that there??

I'm asking this because I don't know...not trying to stir the pot. From the outside looking in, it looks to me like they had a bad apple (Eaton) who fooled a bunch of people at the University who thought he was a great guy while he was doing some really bad things. He is in jail now. Why do you want a housecleaning? Is there more going on besides that there??

 

Wow. What happened if NKU paid all of Eaton's former mistresses $200,000 each? That's about a million dollars of taxpayer money? I'm with plantmanky on this one, clean house as it appears they are about covering up things instead of fighting for the good of the school.

^ Fighting it really wouldn't matter, they were going to have to pay one way or the other, it's just the attempted cover up hasn't sat well with people.

Wow. What happened if NKU paid all of Eaton's former mistresses $200,000 each? That's about a million dollars of taxpayer money? I'm with plantmanky on this one, clean house as it appears they are about covering up things instead of fighting for the good of the school.

 

Again, not trying to stir the pot, just trying to understand. First, I don't know how many "mistresses" he had. The school is saying this is the only person they paid, correct? If so, I am sure the lawyers and PR people got involved and said they are better off making this go away than have the bad publicity and potential to lose more in a lawsuit. These kinds of decisions go on in every big company and I am sure many universities every year.

 

I guess if the cover up was to try to protect NKU's reputation, I can at least understand. If others knew what was going on and let it go on and that is what is being covered up, then I agree others heads' should roll.

Again, not trying to stir the pot, just trying to understand. First, I don't know how many "mistresses" he had. The school is saying this is the only person they paid, correct? If so, I am sure the lawyers and PR people got involved and said they are better off making this go away than have the bad publicity and potential to lose more in a lawsuit. These kinds of decisions go on in every big company and I am sure many universities every year.

 

I guess if the cover up was to try to protect NKU's reputation, I can at least understand. If others knew what was going on and let it go on and that is what is being covered up, then I agree others heads' should roll.

 

Others knew by reading the Enquirer article. The lawyer who is quoted says "money well spent" which I do not agree with. We pay taxes to support NKU, and they pay off mistresses of convicted felons? They are getting bad press, so it's not going away. It even says in the story there are 4 others who he was having affairs with on campus. Clean house, in my opinion. It has been mishandled and is an embarrassment to the school.

This is the part that stands out to me:

 

"March 18, 2013 - Soards signs a settlement agreement for $200,000. In return, 'she agrees to not sue the school or help anyone else do so.' She also agrees to remain silent on the agreement itself and not speak out against NKU or anyone who works there."

 

Back to Eaton, of course NKU doesn't want to release the other names, they don't want any other victims to be able to network with each other to bring suit against NKU.

 

If I were one of the other victims (assuming there are other victims) I would go to Soards, get her help, and sign a non-disclosure with her.

 

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I also don't understand if one employee steals from NKU they get 10 years in jail and another person steals from NKU (at a felony level) and all they have to do is pay the money back:

 

The school has since fired another employee, dance team coach Jennifer Hilvert, also for using school credit cards. Hilvert racked up nearly $7,000 worth of air travel and was fired in June 2014. She has since paid back $5,300 of the $6,800 taken, and NKU did not refer the case for criminal prosecution.

 

Campbell County commonwealth attorney Michelle Snodgrass asked for a follow-up investigation that could result in criminal charges for Hilvert after reading about the case in The Enquirer. Snodgrass declined comment on the ongoing investigation, now being conducted by the NKU police department.

 

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On Hilvert, NKU along with the Campbell County Commonwealth Attorney's Office needs to launch an independent investigation and go through every dollar she ever spent at NKU to make sure the air travel was the only theft.

 

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Finally, for all of you including the NKU lawyers that I know read this stuff, I am not saying anyone did anything else wrong or that NKU did anything wrong. What I am saying is if NKU wants to have a squeaky clean image and do the right thing then NKU needs to get to the bottom of every last detail of each of these two cases and make it right. In other words, if there are other victims, pay them a fair amount and felony thefts deserve felony prosecutions, anything less in either case is shady.

This is the part that stands out to me:

 

"March 18, 2013 - Soards signs a settlement agreement for $200,000. In return, 'she agrees to not sue the school or help anyone else do so.' She also agrees to remain silent on the agreement itself and not speak out against NKU or anyone who works there."

 

Back to Eaton, of course NKU doesn't want to release the other names, they don't want any other victims to be able to network with each other to bring suit against NKU.

 

If I were one of the other victims (assuming there are other victims) I would go to Soards, get her help, and sign a non-disclosure with her.

 

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I also don't understand if one employee steals from NKU they get 10 years in jail and another person steals from NKU (at a felony level) and all they have to do is pay the money back:

 

The school has since fired another employee, dance team coach Jennifer Hilvert, also for using school credit cards. Hilvert racked up nearly $7,000 worth of air travel and was fired in June 2014. She has since paid back $5,300 of the $6,800 taken, and NKU did not refer the case for criminal prosecution.

 

Campbell County commonwealth attorney Michelle Snodgrass asked for a follow-up investigation that could result in criminal charges for Hilvert after reading about the case in The Enquirer. Snodgrass declined comment on the ongoing investigation, now being conducted by the NKU police department.

 

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On Hilvert, NKU along with the Campbell County Commonwealth Attorney's Office needs to launch an independent investigation and go through every dollar she ever spent at NKU to make sure the air travel was the only theft.

 

=============================

 

Finally, for all of you including the NKU lawyers that I know read this stuff, I am not saying anyone did anything else wrong or that NKU did anything wrong. What I am saying is if NKU wants to have a squeaky clean image and do the right thing then NKU needs to get to the bottom of every last detail of each of these two cases and make it right. In other words, if there are other victims, pay them a fair amount and felony thefts deserve felony prosecutions, anything less in either case is shady.

 

Amen to each thing you just said! The NKU President and his henchmen/women are as much to blame for not being open and honest. Hard to trust anybody who has lied as much as the NKU President. Squeaky clean image is long past at NKU due to this enduring debacle. Now two years and running!

This is the part that stands out to me:

 

"March 18, 2013 - Soards signs a settlement agreement for $200,000. In return, 'she agrees to not sue the school or help anyone else do so.' She also agrees to remain silent on the agreement itself and not speak out against NKU or anyone who works there."

 

Back to Eaton, of course NKU doesn't want to release the other names, they don't want any other victims to be able to network with each other to bring suit against NKU.

 

If I were one of the other victims (assuming there are other victims) I would go to Soards, get her help, and sign a non-disclosure with her.

 

=============================

 

I also don't understand if one employee steals from NKU they get 10 years in jail and another person steals from NKU (at a felony level) and all they have to do is pay the money back:

 

The school has since fired another employee, dance team coach Jennifer Hilvert, also for using school credit cards. Hilvert racked up nearly $7,000 worth of air travel and was fired in June 2014. She has since paid back $5,300 of the $6,800 taken, and NKU did not refer the case for criminal prosecution.

 

Campbell County commonwealth attorney Michelle Snodgrass asked for a follow-up investigation that could result in criminal charges for Hilvert after reading about the case in The Enquirer. Snodgrass declined comment on the ongoing investigation, now being conducted by the NKU police department.

 

=============================

 

On Hilvert, NKU along with the Campbell County Commonwealth Attorney's Office needs to launch an independent investigation and go through every dollar she ever spent at NKU to make sure the air travel was the only theft.

 

=============================

 

Finally, for all of you including the NKU lawyers that I know read this stuff, I am not saying anyone did anything else wrong or that NKU did anything wrong. What I am saying is if NKU wants to have a squeaky clean image and do the right thing then NKU needs to get to the bottom of every last detail of each of these two cases and make it right. In other words, if there are other victims, pay them a fair amount and felony thefts deserve felony prosecutions, anything less in either case is shady.

 

Thanks Ru. I have not been following NKU that closely of late (heard about Eaton and Hilvert but not the cover up stuff). Sounds like there are some interesting things (not in a good way) going on in the Administration there.

I've not been happy with the direction NKU's leadership has taken the university for some time now and after hearing about the majority of information on here that I was unaware of, I'm more than happy that I no longer donate to them. There's still good people there; unfortunately none of them are in the higher level positions.

Mearns was going to have a very difficult time following Votruba's footsteps no matter what, but all of this certainly didn't help make that any easier.

Were the other women subordinates of Eaton's? If not, would they even have a Sexual Harassment case?

Were the other women subordinates of Eaton's? If not, would they even have a Sexual Harassment case?

 

From what the paper said there were four others involved with Eaton. It seems as the Board of Regents Chairman Dennis Repenning breached the confidentiality agreement by commenting on Soards in the paper. I read the agreement online and it says representatives of NKU can't talk about her and she can't disparage them. Looks like it is breached to me. Did not mention names of other women involved. Wonder if they are getting their legal people ready to file claims as well?

I've not been happy with the direction NKU's leadership has taken the university for some time now and after hearing about the majority of information on here that I was unaware of, I'm more than happy that I no longer donate to them. There's still good people there; unfortunately none of them are in the higher level positions.

 

Looking at the way the President refused to comment in the paper, I would say there is no leadership out there. That makes three of four scandals at NKU under Mearns in less than two years. It all starts at the top.