Rebecca Bryant Novak was warned to stay quiet. She didn’t.
During her first semester as a conducting Ph.D. student at the Eastman School of Music — a world-renowned conservatory within the University of Rochester — she blew the whistle on a faculty member’s harassment.
After a year-long investigation, a panel of faculty and administrators confirmed both the harassment and Eastman’s failure to respond appropriately. That was the University of Rochester’s own conclusion.
But the school didn’t protect her. It retaliated.
While the investigation was underway, the Title IX coordinator assigned to Rebecca’s case threatened her with a defamation lawsuit after she spoke publicly about her experience. After the investigation concluded, the professor she reported remained in control of her academic progress.
Rebecca kept speaking out. So Eastman expelled her.
No hearing. No prior disciplinary history. No due process. Just a sudden dismissal based on academic progress policies the school itself failed to follow.
This wasn’t a bureaucratic error. It was a message: Speak out, and you’ll pay.
Rebecca’s courage cost her a career. That should outrage every student, every faculty member, and every person who believes in the right to speak freely without fear.
Eastman tried to make her an example. Let’s make her a rallying cry.
Tell the University of Rochester: Reinstate Rebecca Bryant Novak, restore due process, and stop muzzling students into a culture of silence.
