University of Central Arkansas Investigates Sexual Harassment Charges at Literary Magazine

The Oxford American, which bills itself as “the Southern Magazine of Good Writing,” was founded in 1992 at the University of Mississippi. In 2004, the magazine became a nonprofit and moved to offices on the campus of the University of Central Arkansas in Conway.

Last month the board of the organization overseeing the magazine fired the founder and former editor and the managing editor for art for inappropriate behavior. The editors deny the charges.

But an investigation by the Title IX coordinator at the University of Central Arkansas found many instances of inappropriate sexual language had occurred. The report stated that “potential sexual harassment situations were documented.” The draft report concluded that the workplace environment could be considered “hostile.” The report recommended training to combat sexual harassment be instituted for employees of the magazine.