In fall 2024, GW Law experienced vandalism in many ways. While many students are likely familiar with the removal of posters that has plagued the law school over the course of the year, many may be less familiar with two other instances.
On or about Oct. 29, 2024, deliberate marring of brass interior doors of the elevator in Stockton Hall was discovered. Both doors maintained substantial scratches over a large portion of the middle of the doors, without any discernible design. There were no cameras in the elevator. It is unclear when the markings were made, who made them, or why they made them. The doors have since been buffed, and while the marks are still visible, they are less perceptible.
The night before Nov. 15, 2024, security and housekeeping personnel reportedly discovered the smearing of feces in the men’s restroom on the second floor of Burns Hall. The smearing extended to walls and other surfaces in the restroom. This is not merely deliberate vandalism, but also a health hazard. There were no security cameras in the hallway near the bathroom involved. A report is on file with the GW Police Department (GWPD); however, GWPD never responded to Nota Bene’s request for the report.
Elizabeth Ewert, Senior Associate Dean for Administrative Affairs, is responsible for anything concerning life-safety and physical plant management. ABM, the facilities housekeeping contractor, presently maintains a schedule with only two staffers to maintain, essentially, the entirety of the law school (called Zone 4) when it is most active.
Mass vandalism can lead to escalation of self-destructive or antisocial behavior. At other universities, administrators discovering vandalism will notify the student body, discouraging the behavior and encourage students to report incidents when they are discovered.
Here, rather than addressing the issues head on, our administration chooses to brush incidents of vandalism under the rug, all the while morale and mental health at GW Law continue to decline. Who knows what other incidents we are unaware of because administrators remain opaque and stagnant.
