We are extremely disturbed by the hiring of Mike Polisky to the Athletic Director role of Northwestern University. Polisky in his current role as Deputy Director of Athletics for External Affairs, which he has served in since 2010, failed to protect and support Black Northwestern student athletes and female cheerleaders by allowing racist policies and by ignoring cheerleader complaints of sexual exploitation by fans, donors, and alumni at tailgates and other events. Polisky is also the defendant in a pending lawsuit brought by a Northwestern cheerleader alleging Polisky willfully and wantonly coordinated, condoned, and authorized the cheer team to be sexually exploited. With his blemished past, it is unlikely that Polisky has the capacity to lead Northwestern in its pursuit of equality, a path the University has publicly committed to taking. 

In a letter dated June 14, 2020, President of the University, Morton Schapiro, acknowledged the unrelenting violence experienced by Black and other marginalized groups, and stated that "Northwestern’s commitment to racial and social justice must be equally unrelenting." He also promised that the University would "work, as individuals and as an institution, to seek justice and to better support our black students, staff, and faculty" and recognized the "inequitable policies inflicted upon and directed at other marginalized people," which includes women. The promotion of Mike Polisky to Athletic Director is a complete contradiction to these commitments and promises. 

We are calling for the University, before Polisky is formally promoted to the Athletic Director position, to undertake an independent investigation and publish the results as to whether Polisky acted lawfully and with integrity when responding to cheerleader complaints. If these results yield that Polisky acted in contravention of the law or Northwestern policies, we demand that the University terminate his employment immediately.