SFA faculty member arrested

A Stephen F. Austin State University faculty member was arrested on campus this morning on a charge of possession of child pornography.

An investigation began when images were discovered on a server used by the business college. SFA's Department of Public Safety worked with other law enforcement agencies to determine the origin and nature of the content and found that images of child pornography had been downloaded and disseminated from an SFA computer. There is no evidence that the illegal images involved SFA students in any way.

In keeping with SFA's employment policies, Dr. Michael Stroup, faculty member and interim chair of the Department of Economics and Finance, was suspended with pay pending further review. In addition, Stroup has been directed to remain off campus during the suspension period. Classes instructed by Stroup will be taught by other faculty members.

While SFA traditionally has protected employees' rights to privacy by not commenting on personnel issues, due to the nature of the charges, the decision was made to make a statement regarding the case. However, because of the ongoing investigation, no other information is available for release at this time.

"We are committed to doing the right thing for students on the campus as well as for faculty members," said Dr. Steve Bullard, interim provost and vice president for academic affairs. "We are adhering to those values in the decisions we make regarding this incident."