Three months after an adjunct professor was arrested for sexually abusing a patient in his private practice, Touro University addressed the issue with students and faculty for the first time, claiming he was listed as teaching a course on ethics this fall due to a “clerical error.” Menachem Kiwak, an instructor in mental-health counseling arrested in May, was quietly put on administrative leave at the end of last school year.
But it wasn’t until The Post reported last week that he was scheduled to teach an upcoming course that Touro finally issued a statement on the charges against him. The Post reported that 20 students had signed up for the online course on “Professional, Legal and Ethical Issues in Counseling,” set to start Sept. 3, records show.
The internal listing sparked outrage among fellow professors, one calling it “an absolute travesty.” Touro called it a “clerical error,” saying Kiwak remained on leave. The university scrambled to find a replacement, and hired a Florida mental-health counselor who specializes in women’s issues.
But she abruptly quit on Friday after reading The Post’s article about Kiwak, saying Touro never informed her about his removal. That speaks to the integrity of the institution,” she said, asking to remain anonymous.
On Monday, Touro sent an email to the college community confirming the “allegations of sexual assault” against Kiwak. The alleged incident occurred off-campus and did not involve a Touro student,” the statement said. It added that Kiwak “does not currently have any teaching or other responsibilities at Touro.
Some faculty members believe Touro tried to keep a lid on the scandal because Kiwak’s mother-in-law, Faye Walkenfeld, chairs the Behavior Science department where he works and is “a big shot in the college.” Walkenfeld was one of two Touro officials who interviewed the Florida counselor.
It’s insane and bewildering that a university as established as Touro should have such a sloppy, disorganized response to the arrest of a teacher for alleged sexual abuse,” said Asher Lovy, the director of Za’akah, an organization that supports sex-abuse survivors in the Jewish community.
Clearly they don’t prioritize the safety of their students, but instead protect their reputation and the relatives of their department chairs,” Lovy said.
Kiwak was accused by a patient of coercing her into sexual acts. He has pleaded not guilty.
