Roethlisberger Ruining GC&SU Reputation?

Last Thursday night, I saw Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers' quarterback, at a local bar here in Milledgeville. Most of my friends were surprised that he was "partying" in such a small town. However, since I used to work at Reynolds Plantation, I knew about his house on Lake Oconee- located about 30 minutes from Milledgeville.

Early Friday morning, a 20 year old female informed Milledgeville police that she had been "sexually assaulted" while at Capital City, a dance club downtown. Although she did not give Roethlisberger's name to officials, she described her attacker as a man standing six foot five and weighing 241 pounds (much larger than the majority of college students at GCSU).

Since the incident, Roethlisberger is denying all charges brought against him. The GBI is working alongside the Milledgeville Police Department to investigate the accusations further.

After class today, I was walking across front campus and noticed a group of high school students with their parents getting a tour of the college. As a member of SGA explained the different buildings and landmarks on campus, a visitor watched as another news network parked their van alongside the five other vans in the police department parking lot.

In addition, the Atlanta Journal Constitution published an article about the incident and portrayed GCSU as, what I gathered, an awful place to send your kids. The reporter made our school out to be one of the biggest party schools around by reporting on someone vomiting out the window of a moving vehicle after leaving the "club district"... Wherever that is!

If I was still a senior in high school, struggling with the decision of where I wanted to go to college, my parents probably would not want to send me to a school where girls were getting "sexually assaulted" and students were getting alcohol poisoning. Of course, all colleges have students who drink and enjoy partying. However, not all colleges have been named one of "America's Best Colleges" several years in a row-in addition to several other national recognitions.

Colleges nationwide face sexual assault charges regularly. However, the vast majority of these cases do not involve celebrities. The small town of Milledgeville was the only college lucky enough to get one of these so far this year.

This situation has taught me a lot about how to handle a crisis in public relations. On behalf of the university, I found it very responsible that they did not get involved. If you were not directly involved in a situation, it is very important just to STAY OUT OF IT (this was the main thing that I learned from the situation). It is also important to talk to the press the least amount as possible. The media has blown this whole situation out of proportion, causing the victim of a crime to drop out of college. They even came into where I work to ask questions after they had been told several times that Roethlisberger never even set foot in that particular bar. Also, never accept bribes from the media.

As a senior, I can honestly say that GCSU is an amazing university. The students and faculty here are some of the best the university system has to offer. What happened last weekend is awful. However, in my seven semesters in Milledgeville, I have never felt unsafe. Compared to when I was admitted to Georgia College, the standards have risen tremendously to get accepted into the university. I hope that this incident does not affect the big decision of choosing a college for upcoming freshmen.