Complaint by Christian College student who disciplined her after she reported her behavior

A 22-year-old woman claims her conservative Christian college disciplined her for alleged premarital sex after she reported being sexually assaulted.

According to NBC News, Visible Music College alumnus Mara Louk filed a complaint with the Department of Education on Wednesday, claiming the school refused to remove her alleged attacker from her classes. her or even investigating allegations of rape, according to NBC News.

The complaint states that Louk was assaulted by another student at her off-campus apartment on November 2, 2021. Louk said she reported the assault to an administrator on the same day. the next day and submitted to Memphis police on November 4.

A week later, the police department told Louk that they would not make an arrest, citing insufficient evidence. Soon after, she said, a university administrator refused to remove the alleged attacker from her classes, saying “there’s really nothing we can do at this point.” On November 24, the school told her it would not investigate her alleged assault because it occurred off campus.

In a meeting with Louk and her parents, the lawsuit says, administrators also allege Louk slept with her ex-boyfriend that same semester, violating university regulations on premarital sex. core. Her manager said her alleged attacker told them about the incident and her ex-boyfriend confirmed it, the lawsuit says.

Louk said she denied the allegation, but the school still tried to get her to sign a “pastoral care contract” that confessed to it. The contract would also require Louk to complete her online education and forbid her from telling other students about the alleged assault — restrictions the school said would give her “some necessary structure” and made sure she addressed “the mental and emotional issues behind the breach. ”

“It doesn’t seem real; Louk told NBC. “I thought this was just some crazy, horrible nightmare and I hope one day I’ll wake up from it.”

Louk, who was majoring in modern music and was nine credits short of graduation, refused to sign the contract. She finished the semester, withdrew from college, and moved home to Iowa. She is asking the Department of Education to investigate whether the school discriminated against her based on her gender and whether they violated federal rules about responding to sexual assaults. university education or not.

Visible is a private Christian music college based in Memphis, Tennessee, with approximately 120 students. It was founded in 2000 by Dr. Ken Steorts of the Christian rock band Skillet.

The school did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Daily Beast. Steorts told NBC the school cannot comment on student affairs and has not seen a copy of the complaint, but will cooperate with any investigation into the allegations.