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CNN Saturday Morning News

Interview with Andrea Prasse

Aired December 27, 2003 - 09:52   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


SEAN CALLEBS, CNN ANCHOR: OK, moving on, at the Air Force Academy in Colorado, a female cadet has been reinstated on the orders of the secretary of the Air Force. It means she will finally get her degree in aeronautical engineering.
Andrea Prasse joins us by phone to explain what happened.

Andrea, thanks very much for joining us this morning.

ANDREA PRASSE, AIR FORCE ACADEMY CADET (on phone): Thank you for having me.

CALLEBS: We've heard so much about what went on, apparently, at the Air Force Academy over all the years. The allegations against you had nothing to do with sexual misconduct. Yours was about the honor code, "I will not lie, cheat, steal, nor tolerate anyone who does."

And apparently it came down to whether you drew a design for a class assignment. Can you kind of bring us up to date?

PRASSE: Basically what happened is, I tried to report ongoing harassment, and sought a no-contact order to prevent him from contacting me. And he then filed an honor charge against me.

CALLEBS: And he was another cadet.

PRASSE: Yes, he was.

CALLEBS: OK. And what happened? You were thrown out?

PRASSE: I was recommended for disenrollment eight days before my graduation.

CALLEBS: Wow. How did that make -- you had been there four years. What kind of student were you? That must have just devastated you.

PRASSE: It absolutely did devastate me. I stayed out of trouble the whole time I was at the academy. I was in the top one-third of my class. And I knew that if you did anything that was questionable, it would jeopardize your graduation. And I just was not going to do that.

CALLEBS: Right, conduct unbecoming.

PRASSE: Correct.

CALLEBS: And when you went before the honor -- to deal with the honor code violations, alleged violations, what happened? Apparently there were supposed to -- there could have been two people who could have cleared you. They didn't show. But still, the academy felt they had grounds to dismiss you.

PRASSE: Right. It wasn't that they didn't show. It was that I was not allowed to call them as witnesses.

CALLEBS: Oh, OK.

PRASSE: I was denied due process according to their own regulations.

CALLEBS: And what did you think about this? I mean, everybody in the country, I presume, by now, has heard about all the allegations that went on there, the way people either looked the other way or just let people slide through and continue graduating from what is really one of the most storied institutions in the U.S.

PRASSE: Right. Just on the honor code, based on my experience and conversations with others I've met through my battle, the honor system has serious flaws. And the academy needs to recognize that.

With the sexual harass -- or the sexual assault scandal that has occurred at the academy, they feel that changing the leadership will ensure a change of culture, and that's not true. It's going to take leadership that will understand how systemic gender-based harassment is, and officers and faculty who create an atmosphere free of gender- based intimidation.

CALLEBS: Well, great. Andrea Prasse, and you graduate next year, I presume? And you're going to be able to throw your hat? Or are those (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...

PRASSE: You know, on Monday I was shopping in Chicago, got a phone call from my attorney, letting me know that the academy has changed my status to graduated. So apparently I've graduated.

CALLEBS: Well, congratulations, and best of luck to you.

PRASSE: Thank you.

CALLEBS: And I guess there's a lesson to stick to your guns. Andrea Prasse in Wisconsin, thanks very much.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired December 27, 2003 - 09:52   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SEAN CALLEBS, CNN ANCHOR: OK, moving on, at the Air Force Academy in Colorado, a female cadet has been reinstated on the orders of the secretary of the Air Force. It means she will finally get her degree in aeronautical engineering.
Andrea Prasse joins us by phone to explain what happened.

Andrea, thanks very much for joining us this morning.

ANDREA PRASSE, AIR FORCE ACADEMY CADET (on phone): Thank you for having me.

CALLEBS: We've heard so much about what went on, apparently, at the Air Force Academy over all the years. The allegations against you had nothing to do with sexual misconduct. Yours was about the honor code, "I will not lie, cheat, steal, nor tolerate anyone who does."

And apparently it came down to whether you drew a design for a class assignment. Can you kind of bring us up to date?

PRASSE: Basically what happened is, I tried to report ongoing harassment, and sought a no-contact order to prevent him from contacting me. And he then filed an honor charge against me.

CALLEBS: And he was another cadet.

PRASSE: Yes, he was.

CALLEBS: OK. And what happened? You were thrown out?

PRASSE: I was recommended for disenrollment eight days before my graduation.

CALLEBS: Wow. How did that make -- you had been there four years. What kind of student were you? That must have just devastated you.

PRASSE: It absolutely did devastate me. I stayed out of trouble the whole time I was at the academy. I was in the top one-third of my class. And I knew that if you did anything that was questionable, it would jeopardize your graduation. And I just was not going to do that.

CALLEBS: Right, conduct unbecoming.

PRASSE: Correct.

CALLEBS: And when you went before the honor -- to deal with the honor code violations, alleged violations, what happened? Apparently there were supposed to -- there could have been two people who could have cleared you. They didn't show. But still, the academy felt they had grounds to dismiss you.

PRASSE: Right. It wasn't that they didn't show. It was that I was not allowed to call them as witnesses.

CALLEBS: Oh, OK.

PRASSE: I was denied due process according to their own regulations.

CALLEBS: And what did you think about this? I mean, everybody in the country, I presume, by now, has heard about all the allegations that went on there, the way people either looked the other way or just let people slide through and continue graduating from what is really one of the most storied institutions in the U.S.

PRASSE: Right. Just on the honor code, based on my experience and conversations with others I've met through my battle, the honor system has serious flaws. And the academy needs to recognize that.

With the sexual harass -- or the sexual assault scandal that has occurred at the academy, they feel that changing the leadership will ensure a change of culture, and that's not true. It's going to take leadership that will understand how systemic gender-based harassment is, and officers and faculty who create an atmosphere free of gender- based intimidation.

CALLEBS: Well, great. Andrea Prasse, and you graduate next year, I presume? And you're going to be able to throw your hat? Or are those (UNINTELLIGIBLE)...

PRASSE: You know, on Monday I was shopping in Chicago, got a phone call from my attorney, letting me know that the academy has changed my status to graduated. So apparently I've graduated.

CALLEBS: Well, congratulations, and best of luck to you.

PRASSE: Thank you.

CALLEBS: And I guess there's a lesson to stick to your guns. Andrea Prasse in Wisconsin, thanks very much.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com