Baptist leaders, Truett McConnell University (TMU) in Cleveland, and its alumni are speaking out following claims that the school’s president ignored years of warnings about sexual misconduct by a senior school administrator.
According to an article published Thursday, May 29, by The Roys Report (TRR), a Christian media outlet, former TMU Vice President of Academic Services Bradley Reynolds is accused of grooming and sexually abusing a female student-athlete over several years, beginning in 2013.
Former TMU student Hayle Swinson alleges Reynolds lured her into one-on-one “discipleship” sessions in the basement of his home, which escalated from inappropriate touching during prayer to rape. She claims the abuse continued through 2017.
“I was groomed, I was confused, I was targeted,” Swinson told TRR publisher Julie Roys in a podcast. “I felt isolated, like I was alone. . . It took, and it has taken, and it will take years of my life to unwind every lie that was told to me.”
Despite a 2016 report by the university’s then-Title IX coordinator outlining the allegations to TMU President Dr. Emir Caner and a petition signed by more than 50 female students in 2019 objecting to Reynolds’ behavior, TRR reports the school’s leadership failed to act.
Reynolds was allowed to continue working at the university until 2024, when Swinson filed a complaint with the White County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO), which has jurisdiction over the university.
No charges filed
According to a copy of the sheriff’s incident report filed on February 29, 2024, and shared by TRR, Reynolds denied the accusations against him. He claimed he only knew Swinson as a friend. While forensics testing of his mobile phone backed up evidence in emails Swinson supplied to law enforcement, on May 29, 2024, the sheriff’s investigator closed the case, citing insufficient evidence to prosecute. The investigator wrote in his report, “It is clear from the emails and text messages Brad and Swinson had a long relationship spanning from September 2013 until June 2017.”
Reynolds, who was married with children, left TMU shortly after the allegations came to light.
The university released a statement on May 30, in light of the TRR report saying that, “In February 2024, Dr. Reynolds notified TMU leadership that he was under investigation by the White County Sheriff’s Office regarding an inappropriate relationship. Dr. Reynolds was immediately placed on administrative leave and his employment with TMU ended in a matter of days.”
The statement goes on to say, “In early summer of 2024, after Reynolds’ separation from TMU, we learned that the WCSO investigation had been closed. According to a copy of the police report, a forensic analysis by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation uncovered hundreds of graphic emails sent by Reynolds from his personal Yahoo account, which Reynolds had previously told investigators were not his.”
Reporting and fallout
The Roys Report, a self-described Christian media outlet with a mission to report “the unvarnished truth about what’s happening in the Christian community,” based much of its reporting on the 300-plus emails Swinson provided to law enforcement and a 57-page dossier it says Swinson and her lawyer provided to the outlet.
Former staff and students are said to have corroborated concerns about Reynolds’ inappropriate behavior. They also said whistleblowers, including TMU’s former Title IX coordinator Jonathan Morris and former Vice President of Student Services Chris Eppling, were pushed out of their jobs after voicing concerns.
In its statement, the university disputes that Morris was retaliated against. The school said Morris, who worked at TMU from 2010 to 2020, was asked to resign “after a series of unauthorized, personal expenses on his University-issued credit card.” The school details his alleged transactions in the statement posted to social media. Now Habersham has not yet reached Morris for comment.
Online outrage
In the aftermath of the TRR report, online outrage has intensified calls for President Emir Caner’s removal. Some alumni and former employees describe a “culture of silence” and retaliation at TMU.
“I, too, was a victim of SA [sexual abuse] at the hands of the director who hired me at TMU,” Kim Creech said. In a post to social media, she alleges her abuser “was allowed to not only remain employed on campus, but he was given a more private office in order to continue his sexual deviance.”
Abbey Booke, a former student-athlete and staff member at Truett McConnell University (TMU), expressed deep frustration and disappointment with university leadership for its lack of accountability in handling abuse allegations and internal misconduct.
In a detailed Facebook post, Booke described her involvement with TMU from 2015 to 2022, first as a student and later in leadership roles within Student Development.
She recalled a personal encounter with Reynolds, during which she said he held her hand in a closed-door meeting and commented on her appearance. Booke praised Swinson for speaking out. She also criticized the administration’s treatment of colleagues who tried to raise concerns, including Morris.
Disillusioned by what she described as a culture of secrecy and retaliation, Booke resigned from her position in 2022. She concluded her post by calling for the truth to come to light and the university’s leadership to be held accountable.
Calls for accountability
The Georgia Baptist Convention is also calling for accountability at the private Christian college in Cleveland, Georgia. TMU operates under the auspices of the Georgia Baptist Mission Board. The Georgia Baptist Convention elects its Trustees.
Late Friday night, May 30, Georgia Baptist leaders addressed the TRR report in a statement to The Christian Index, the Convention’s online publication. They called on TMU’s Board of Trustees to “take the appropriate actions to fully understand what happened and to ensure this type of behavior will never be repeated.”
Seven members of the Convention’s leadership, including Georgia Baptist Convention President Steve Browning and Mission Board Executive Director Thomas Hammond —both affiliated with churches in Alpharetta—signed the statement.
TMU alumni, too, are calling for action. They are circulating a list of Board of Trustees members’ names, encouraging fellow alumni, church members, and the general public to contact Board members and “Let them know what you think.” All but one of the Trustees appear to have male names; most are from Georgia, with a few listed from out of state.
In addition to contacting the Trustees, concerned alumni are circulating a petition urging the Board to conduct a thorough investigation into the allegations. Petitioners are also asking the Board to investigate President Caner and others who may have known about the alleged abuse and seek a “careful review of all dismissals and employment terminations at TMU since 2009 to determine whether any were retaliatory in nature.”
As of mid-day May 31, the petition had more than 600 signatures.
‘Vital’ meeting
Hours after state Baptist leaders issued their statement, TMU issued its own.
The university publicly addressed the accusations against Reynolds and the school’s administration following an impromptu faculty and staff meeting on Friday, May 30.
Vice President for Finance and Operations and Chief Financial Officer, Dr. Jason Graffagnino, sent out a text to employees urging, “…it is vital for you to attend this meeting. We are praying for unity, peace, and healing for the entire TMU family.”
Those who attended say the university parking lot was filled to capacity.
They ‘turned a blind eye’
According to TRR, Swinson’s Decatur-based attorney, Marcia Shein, sent a letter to the TMU Board of Trustees in 2024 stating, in part, “TMU President Emir Caner failed to act when he was made aware of the inappropriate relationship . . . Had due diligence been taken . . . other female students would not have experienced harm.”
Shein said TMU officials did not respond, but a university attorney did. She met with the attorney this past February to discuss a resolution to help Hayle, but says no one from the school, Trustees, or the attorney “got back to us to find a fair and reasonable solution.” Shein adds, the Trustees never contacted her or Hayle on their own to investigate the matter further.
Speaking on the podcast with Roys, Swinson said she believes TMU needs a change in both leadership and procedures.
“My prayer is that my story and the stories of other victims that were discovered over the last decade at Truett McConnell University would no longer be dismissed but heard, so that it will help make it possible for no other girl to be a victim on this campus ever again.”
Creech echoes that sentiment in her post while simultaneously condemning those she says were “given a chance to speak up for what is right,” but instead “turned a blind eye.”
This article has been updated to include information about the petition drive
