Communication between faculty and staff needs to be the focus of improvements made in the Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication, according to a Center for Creative Justice report.

CCJ was asked to assess an atmosphere of incivility within the Greenlee School and determine how to resolve the situation in a nurturing and constructive manner. The report, which was released Friday, summarizes issues within the school and recommends actions to improve the situation.

Communication was a key issue recognized by faculty members as a problem within the school. The report stated communication problems arose when members of the school avoided dealing with conflicts.

CCJ and the Faculty Senate released individual reports on Friday investigating a climate of hostility within the Greenlee School. The Faculty Senate report examined actions taken by former provost Rollin Richmond. The CCJ report investigated internal issues in the Greenlee School.

In May, Richmond dismissed Greenlee School Chairman John Eighmey and Associate Chairman Joel Geske after he heard claims of hostility and racism in the school. He also suspended the faculty-shared governance of the school. Two weeks later, President Gregory Geoffroy reinstated Eighmey, Geske and the governance.

The Faculty Senate report concluded Richmond acted before he investigated the matter, didn’t follow proper university procedure and simply made a mistake.

According to the CCJ report, “There is a tendency to avoid dealing with conflicts between individuals. Individuals often don’t speak directly to the person who has upset them. There is a sense of powerlessness that nothing can be done when a tenured faculty member is perceived to be treating another School member poorly.”

Jack Girton, Faculty Senate president-elect and chairman of the Faculty Senate task force that examined the case, said the school needs greater communication and to make information available to faculty members.

“A system is needed to communicate concerns and address issues before they grow into greater concerns,” he said.

Girton said the CCJ report’s strength is providing for long-term procedural change that will help deal with problems that may arise in the future.

Stephen Coon, associate professor in the Greenlee School, said its future is bright.

“It’s safe to say we are dedicated to improving our program,” he said.

The reports were essential for the school’s progress because it brought issues out in the public that needed to be addressed, said Coon, member of an in-house committee formed to look at key issues.

“This incident has been a wake-up call and forced us to take a good, hard look at ourselves,” he said.

Peter Rabideau, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, said he plans to continue to meet monthly with the in-house faculty committee.

“I think we have opened the line of communication, and I’m encouraged that they are on the right track,” he said.