Phylicia Rashad apologizes to Howard University students, promising to "participate in trainings" following her celebration of Bill Cosby's release

HuffPost

The former Cosby Show star sent a letter of apology to the Howard University student body on Friday, one day after she assumed her new job as dean of the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts and two days after her celebratory tweet over the overturning of Cosby's sexual assault conviction that she had to walk back. The letter was sent amid the Howard University community expressing dismay over Rashad holding such an important position while dismissing Cosby's sexual misconduct. “My remarks were in no way directed towards survivors of sexual assault,” Rashad wrote, “to learn how I can become a stronger ally to sexual assault survivors and everyone who has suffered at the hands of an abuser.” Howard University released a statement earlier this week scolding Rashad but didn’t offer much else. “While Dean Rashad has acknowledged in her follow-up tweet that victims must be heard and believed, her initial tweet lacked sensitivity towards survivors of sexual assault,” the school wrote. “Personal positions of University leadership do not reflect Howard University’s policies.”