If Lauren Dula only suffered hazing as a freshman KnightMoves dancer, she said she never would have quit the team.
After all, she had never quit anything in her life, Dula said in her resignation letters to UCF Athletics officials.
But the hazing she said she suffered was only the tip of the iceberg — Dula said she was sexually assaulted while taking photos with fans during the football game in the Carl Black and Gold Cabana, an area where individuals must donate to the university’s athletics program to purchase tickets.
Athletics officials told Dula the 27-day span between home football games was too long — she wouldn’t have a chance to identify the man who sexually assaulted her so he could at least be trespassed from future games, records state.
Dula told Knight News she is now speaking out in hopes of creating change in the culture and environment — for student-athletes and coaches — within the UCF KnightMoves dance team.
The sophomore political science major, and women and gender studies minor, sent a letter to UCF head cheer and dance coach Linda Gooch and Director of Athletics Danny White outlining why she quit the dance team on Dec. 1, 2019.
“I wrote the letter to explain why I quit but to also make Gooch and Danny White aware of what was going on and to hopefully enact change with the dance team so that this doesn’t happen to another future member,” she said to Knight News and in her letter. “Yes I didn’t have a good experience on the dance team because of the hazing, sexual assault and culture of the team so I wanted to voice what happened to me so that it doesn’t happen to another future member.”
Dula told Knight News she also wrote the letter after not having the chance at a timely formal exit interview to explain her reasoning for leaving the dance team.
Knight News has been working since May to get answers about the dance team’s “unfounded” criminal hazing allegations and the possibility of a double standard in the way the university has treated the dance team, compared to the way it treats Greek organizations.
Since Knight News broke the story last week, the university has refused to answer questions or frequently changed its position on the questions it has answered — the process has been shrouded in secrecy.
According to UCF, sexual assault is defined as sexual contact that occurs without consent.
Dula said during the UCF football game against Houston on Nov. 2, 2019, the sexual assault by an individual in the Carl Black and Gold Cabana was the final straw and led her to resign from the team.
She said during the third quarter of the football game, members of the spirit team go into the stands and interact with fans. Dula said in the letter that there was no security present when the dancers met with fans in the tiki-style lounge that serves alcohol.
“A UCF fan approached us and asked to take a picture with us, of course we said yes because we were always happy to take a picture with a fan,” she said in the letter. “However, while we were taking the picture he put [his] hand on my butt and grabbed it and once the picture was over he slapped it.”
Dula wrote that the UCF coaches never explained or taught the team how to react in those situations. She said she felt devastated and defeated after this.
“I confided in a [veteran dancer] about what happened and was told to just let it go because that is what happens and that if I complain to a coach that I will be benched,” Dula wrote in the letter. “It’s unfortunate that this is the culture that is acceptable for student athletes on dance team to be treated and that the athletes believe that voicing their concern would have ramifications.”
In the letter, Dula said Gooch contacted her to go to the next football game and see if she could identify the individual.
“Coach Gooch, you specifically contacted me with specific plans for me to get into Carl Black and Gold Cabana,” she wrote. “I had been worried about having to go and identify the person, but I knew it was the right thing to do. I also knew that if I was not 200% sure that I would never accuse someone.”
When the War on I-4 game came around on Nov. 29, 2019, Gooch backed out.
“Your response was that ‘no that is not necessary’ and people were concerned with how long it had been since it happened,” Dula wrote. “Your response shows me that you do not really care about what happens to your student athletes or their safety.”
UCF encourages any student who experiences sexual violence to report it. More information can be found at Let’s Be Clear’s website.
There is no record that UCF has identified or trespassed the man from campus — Knight News has reached out to UCF for comment regarding Title IX implications.
“No matter the source of the report, the University is obligated to investigate to the degree possible and take prompt and effective action,” the Toolkit for Assisting Students states.
This is a developing story. Check back with Knight News for updates.
