Kelly Anderson

Former Georgetown University parent Karen Littlefair pleaded guilty in federal court Jan. 22 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud after prosecutors said she paid a private company to take online classes for her son. The U.S. Attorney’s Office recommended a four month sentence, $9,500 fine and 12 months of supervised release, according to court documents. Littlefair entered into a plea agreement Dec. 9, according to a U.S. Department of Justice news release. Littlefair paid William “Rick” Singer’s for-profit college counseling and preparation business, The Key, $9,000 to take online classes for her son James Littlefair (COL ’18) to satisfy his Georgetown graduation requirements, according to charging documents. One class was taken at Arizona State University, but then transferred to Georgetown for credit, according to the Los Angeles Times. Littlefair was the 53rd person and fifth Georgetown parent charged in the Varsity Blues college admissions scandal, a national investigation int...

Bisi Okubadejo (LAW ’03) started the role as the Georgetown University’s first associate vice president of equal opportunity, affirmative action and compliance Jan. 27. Okubadejo will help oversee efforts to prevent instances of discrimination on campus, according to Rosemary Kilkenny (LAW ’87), the university’s vice president for diversity, equity, and inclusion and chief diversity officer. Okubadejo will also manage the daily operations of the Office of Institutional Diversity, Equity and Affirmative Action, which works to promote equality in educational, employment and contracting opportunities, according to Kilkenny. Okubadejo will help address cases of discrimination filed with the IDEAA office, as well as with external federal and city agencies, and will help lead efforts at the university to promote nondiscrimination. “The role presents an incredibly unique opportunity to give back to my alma mater while addressing cases of discrimination, and working as part of a team tha...

Former Washington, D.C. Councilmember Jack Evans filed Jan. 27 to join special election for the seat he vacated when he resigned a week prior amid investigations into ethics violations. After spending 29 years representing Ward 2 on the council, the council commissioned a report that found Evans had committed 11 ethical violations stemming from his legal and consulting work outside of the council. The council then voted unanimously to oust Evans; however, he resigned before the expulsion process could be finalized. Evans also filed to join the Ward 2 primary race held every four years. Evans is additionally the subject of an ongoing federal investigation, which led to a June raid of his Georgetown home. Investigations into Evans and his eventual resignation have weakened the public’s relationship with the council, according to Council Chairman Phil Mendelson. The chairman declined to support Evans’ bid because he considered it damaging to the council’s ongoing effort to improve i...

The Office of Planning and Facilities Management is investigating the cause of a fire that broke out in a private office in Healy Hall on the evening of Jan. 5, according to a Georgetown University spokesperson. The Georgetown University Police Department and the Washington, D.C. Fire and EMS Department responded to a fire alarm that sounded at 7:25 p.m. when no one was in the building. The fire tripped the building’s sprinkler system, which extinguished the fire, according to a university spokesperson. The office is housed in the Kennedy Institute of Ethics, located on the fourth floor of Healy. An electrical issue most likely ignited the fire, according to acting Kennedy Institute Director Daniel Sulmasy. “There were no flammable liquids, candles, or holiday decorations in the office, and it was unoccupied at the time, so none of these can have been causative,” Sulmasy wrote in a Jan. 9 email to The Hoya. “An electrical cause is most likely, but formal investigations are ongoin...

Professors expressed concern about the Georgetown University administration’s response to allegations of sexual misconduct filed against former members of the Georgetown men’s basketball team at a Dec. 16 faculty senate meeting. The faculty senate consists of 75 full-time faculty members from all three university campuses who advise the university president on academic and administrative issues. The senate cleared the scheduled agenda for its December meeting to discuss a letter signed by 68 faculty members in which they advocated for greater university support for survivors of sexual harassment and assault. “Deeply disturbed by recent allegations of sexual misconduct and other forms of intimidation by and toward students on campus, as well as media coverage, we members of the faculty write to express unreservedly our support for survivors of all forms of harassment, misconduct, assault, and any other discriminatory or violent behavior,” the letter reads. The letter was sent to U...

Georgetown University parent Karen Littlefair was the 53rd individual charged in the “Varsity Blues” college admissions scandal for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, according to a Dec. 9 news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts in Boston. Court documents allege that Littlefair paid William “Rick” Singer’s for-profit college counseling business $9,000 to take online classes for Littlefair’s son James Littlefair (COL ’18) to satisfy his Georgetown graduation requirements. After his mother pleaded guilty, Littlefair resigned from his position as an advance staffer for Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, according to Politico. Karen Littlefair was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, which could result in a maximum of 20 years in prison, according to the news release. As part of Littlefair’s plea agreement, prosecutors recommended she receive four months in prison, one year of supervised release, a form of probation after Littl...

The D.C. Board of Zoning Adjustment postponed issuing a zoning exception to Call Your Mother at a Dec. 4 hearing amid community disagreement on granting the deli a variance. The popular bagel deli, which was slated to open on the corner of 35th and O Streets in October, must provide evidence proving it needs a variance to operate its deli, the board ruled. The variance would allow the deli to operate in a residential area and prepare hot foods. The board, a body that approves applications for zoning variances, postponed its final decision on the application for a variance to grant Andrew Dana, founder and owner of Call Your Mother, more time to pursue other options for obtaining zoning approval, such as corner store rules, which allow commercial use of certain properties in residential zones. The board will render its final decision at a hearing on Dec. 11. Without the zoning variance, the deli would be barred from cooking hot food and could only sell untoasted bagels and pre-mad...

The School of Foreign Service celebrated its centennial with a gala weekend over Nov. 15 to 17, hosting panels with notable guest speakers, career-planning workshops and a formal ball at the National Building Museum. The weekend’s festivities included the “Centennial Gala Dinner,” a formal ball held Saturday at the National Building Museum with 1,200 guests, including well-known alumni such as former President Bill Clinton (SFS ’68) and King Felipe VI (GRD ’95) of Spain. The ball also featured a performance by renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma. Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright were also featured on separate panels about global affairs and foreign policy at this weekend’s centennial events. In addition, Academy Award-nominated actor David Strathairn performed a solo play about the life of Jan Karski (GRD ’52, H ’83), a Polish World War II hero, longtime SFS professor and Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient. ...

Religious communities inadequately confront sexuality, alienating their members, students and religious leaders said at a Nov. 6 panel hosted by the LGBTQ Resource Center and Campus Ministry. The event, “Desire, Pleasure, & Faith: A Conversation,” featured the Director for Dharmic Life Brahmachari Sharan and Senior Research Fellow at the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs Jerry McGlone S.J. Students Mariah Johnson (COL ’21) and Saisha Mediratta (SFS ’20) shared their perspectives on sexuality, abstinence and chastity in the Healey Family Student Center Herman Meeting Room. The event was a part of OUTober, a month-long set of programs sponsored by the LGBTQ Center during LGBTQ History month in October and November. Other events coordinated with Campus Ministry included a tea with Campus Ministry chaplains on Oct. 1 and a Mass of Belonging held at Dahlgren Chapel on Oct. 20. Mediratta, whose family is Punjabi, said that early cultural experiences shaped her u...

Students lobbied to preserve the Blommer Science Library at a Georgetown University Student Association town hall Oct. 23, in response to an announcement last spring that the library would permanently close within the next year. The town hall comes after university officials announced in April that Blommer, which is located in the Reiss Science Building, would permanently close and the library’s collections would be relocated to Lauinger Library because of renovations set for Reiss due to flooding and mold concerns. After the announcement, students started an online petition to keep the library open, which had obtained 421 signatures at time of print. The library’s relocation was then put on hold over the summer pending reevaluation. To address the backlash about the closure, the university created the Blommer Library Faculty Review Committee to help decide the library’s future, according to committee member and chemistry department Co-Chair Tim Warren. Committee members include ...