Kennesaw State University released a statement on Friday saying that it would look into a claim that a black student was accused of “harassing” his adviser while waiting for a meeting.
Below is the university’s statement, which was posted to the school’s website:
Kennesaw State University officials are working with the student to review his concerns regarding the behavior of an academic advisor in the WellStar College of Health and Human Services.
Kennesaw State University officials take seriously all student concerns and are dedicated to promoting a positive academic advising experience for all students.
On Thursday, the university had tweeted about the incident explaining that they were aware of it:
We are aware of the video and situation. Thanks for sharing your concern with us. A formal complaint process has begun.
— Kennesaw State (@kennesawstate) May 14, 2015
The university said a formal complaint had been opened after student Kevin Bruce was told to leave the reception area of the WellStar College of Health and Human Services advising center while trying to get an appointment with his adviser, the Atlanta Journal Constitution newspaper reported on Thursday.
The response from the school comes after a video Bruce took of the exchange went viral and prompted the hashtag #ItsBiggerThanKSU to describe instances of racial discrimination.
Below, is Bruce’s video, which he posted to Twitter on Wednesday.
Rude advisors at Kennesaw . Smh pic.twitter.com/ugcX4gnIsp
— KB (@IamKB_) May 14, 2015
In the video, a reported staff member approaches Bruce and accuses him of harassing “Mrs. Tilley,” which Bruce denies.
“Sitting here until somebody’s available is harassing them,” she says. “It is. Would you like me to call campus security? I will go do that.”
The staff member then leaves and the video ends. While Bruce said he didn’t believe racism was the impetus behind the accusation, the incident prompted a dialogue on social media about discrimination, Raw Story reported.
Bruce also posted a detailed explanation about the incident to Twitter in which he identified the woman and other advisers.
That’s everything that led up to it . #ItsBiggerThanKSU pic.twitter.com/pQM8tyHqdW
— KB (@IamKB_) May 14, 2015