Kenneth Starr, the former president of Baylor University who was demoted to chancellor last week amid criticism of the school's handling of sexual assault allegations against football players, is stepping down from his new role.
Starr told ESPN's Joe Schad on Wednesday he will still teach at Baylor Law School. Baylor is a private Baptist college in Waco, Texas, and as chancellor, Starr would have been in charge of external fundraising. "We need to put this horrible situation behind us," he said. "We need to heal Baylor." Starr, famous for being the special prosecutor who investigated Bill Clinton's sexual relationship with Monica Lewinsky, said that to his knowledge, sexual assault was not a major issue at Baylor until last August, when a football player was tried for rape, ABC News reports. He said that he "accepts responsibility" for the scandal but "didn't know about what was happening." ESPN's Paula Lavigne looked at police reports and found that since 2012, campus police officers have handled 12 sexual assault cases.
Critics say the school has ignored allegations of sexual assault by football players, and last week, head football coach Art Briles was suspended with intent to terminate; athletic director Ian McCaw, who was sanctioned and put on probation, resigned on Monday.
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