A months-long investigation — conducted by the Stole Reeves law foundation — into Oregon State University’s student government has found that the Associated Students of OSU fostered a hostile work environment during the 2024-2025 school year, leading to February’s unprecedented shutdown.
The report, released July 25 but has recently been the subject of discussion on social media, concluded that ASOSU employees experienced bullying, harassment, intimidation and a breakdown in workplace culture that posed serious risks to students’ mental health.
Investigators Melissa Healy and Emily Seibold, who were hired by OSU’s Human Resources office, said the February pause in ASOSU operations was “reasonable and legitimate” given the evidence.
According to the report, student senators skipped mandatory training and instead plunged into marathon meetings, where experienced members dominated proceedings and newcomers felt pressured to vote on complex bills they barely understood.
At least one senator’s confirmation hearing dragged on for more than two hours and veered into invasive questions about an employee’s political affiliations and personal life.
Investigators also documented incidents of intimidation, including a protest in which about 30 students confronted former ASOSU President Audrey Schlotter in her office and demanded she sign legislation calling for OSU to divest from Israel. The report describes this incident causing Schlotter to break down in tears after feeling trapped and unsafe.
Anonymous accounts — particularly one called The Pressure — were repeatedly cited as sources of bullying, misinformation and harassment.
According to the report, several interviewees recounted one post that mocked a 19-year-old ASOSU employee with an explicit sexual insult. Investigators said these online attacks left many students fearing for their reputations and mental well-being.
The toxic climate extended inside ASOSU meetings and private communications. Students reported identity-based insults — including being called “Nazis,” “white colonialist” and “straight white bitch” — and said late-night barrages of emails and messages interfered with their personal lives.
Multiple members sought no-contact orders against each other. Staff described being alarmed for students’ safety, with one advisor recalling an employee who said they didn’t know if they would survive another term in ASOSU.
The turmoil culminated in February, when former ASOSU Vice President Zachary Kowash resigned, citing cruelty and mental health concerns. OSU officials halted ASOSU operations days later, citing “systemic breakdowns” in culture, governance and safety.
The report recommends sweeping changes before ASOSU resumes operations.
Proposals include mandatory in-person orientation covering workplace respect and governance rules, clearer supervision by staff, tighter limits on confirmation hearings and work hours, stricter eligibility requirements for candidates and expanded policies on civility and social media conduct.
“Student interviewees… supported the (ASOSU) pause, with comments ranging from ‘I don’t know what I signed up for, but it wasn’t this,’ to ‘this year has been hell,’” the report states. “We heard that interviewees would not recommend that other students get involved in ASOSU, ‘especially not if [they are] women,’ and that students believed they would be ‘bulldozed’ or ‘destroyed’ if they expressed conflicting viewpoints.”
As the shutdown stretches into the 2025-2026 academic year, the timeline for ASOSU’s return remains uncertain. While the Senate is working toward a new Constitution to lift the pause, the organization still faces fresh upheaval following the removal of President Kayla Ramirez after only one academic term in office.
