Drama teacher's shocking inappropriate demands of teenage girls that he claimed were part of 'vulnerability' class

Daily Mail​

2 days ago

A drama teacher is under 'formal investigation' after female students - some just teens - stripped naked in front of their entire class during a so-called 'vulnerability exercise.'
Mace Archer, 56, allegedly positioned himself in the director's chair and watched as three women undressed on stage during mandatory midterm performances at Mesa Community College in Arizona.
Two of the women stripped down to their underwear, while a third student removed every piece of clothing under the glaring stage lights, according to an investigation by the Arizona Republic.
The performance came after a two-year campaign of alleged sexual misconduct that college bosses reportedly ignored.
Students described a pattern of inappropriate behavior that included lingering touches, sexual flirtation, and forcing pupils to watch pornographic content during class, as reported by the Arizona Republic.
The students even created a secret computer file to document Archer's alleged conduct over more than two years.
The document allegedly contained over a dozen anonymous reports of misconduct.
Archer allegedly encouraged one woman to 'dive into' her sexual assault experiences during performances, straddled another female student during a classroom demonstration, and showed the entire class a video of an orgy featuring multiple sex acts.
'There were lingering touches on my knees or shoulders,' revealed graduate Brecklyn Hall, who described her experience in the theater program to the outlet.
'My experience isn't nearly as insane as others. But it was really hard being in the class with him.'
Despite months of student complaints and at least one formal report to administrators in February, college officials allowed Archer to continue teaching young women.
This was after they learned about the shocking stripping exercise that took place during midterms on March 18 and 20.
The investigation exposes how Mesa Community College administrators promised to look 'into the learning objectives' of the acting courses but failed to protect students from further alleged abuse.
Student Gabrielle Monroe witnessed the horrifying midterm performances in the college's 'black box' theater, where approximately 16 students were forced to attend the mandatory exercise designed to help them 'face their fears.'
'On the first day, two women stripped down to their underwear. The person who got naked was on the second day,' Monroe revealed in shocking detail. 'We all knew what to expect.'
One student removed every piece of clothing under the bright stage lights.
'She was just silent. She just took her clothes off,' Monroe described. 'People were kind of shocked, but it was silent. No music, no talking, nothing.'
The young woman folded her clothes neatly on a chair, removed her underwear, then briefly put on a robe before the performance mercifully ended within minutes.
Monroe revealed that Archer had deliberately prepared students for the stripping, discussing in previous classes how women had removed their clothes for similar assignments in the past.
The instructor met individually with students to discuss their 'risk assignment' ideas, with multiple women claiming he specifically targeted younger girls in the class.
'It was mostly the younger, teenage girls in class,' Monroe exposed. 'I have heard from other women that their initial idea was not enough of a fear risk, and he suggested that they remove articles of clothing.'
Maricopa Community Colleges spokesperson Lindsey Wilson told the outlet: 'Because this is an active personnel matter, we cannot provide specific details to protect the privacy of those involved.'
'Our colleges take any allegations of misconduct seriously and are committed to fostering a safe, respectful, and supportive environment for students, faculty, and staff.'