INTERLOCHEN, Mich. – A 97-page report released Tuesday details decades of alleged sexual misconduct at Interlochen Center for the Arts, a boarding school located south of Traverse City. The report covers incidents spanning the 1950s through the 2010s and includes a reference to Jeffrey Epstein, who attended the school in the 1960s and later became a donor.
Survivors come forward
Dozens of former Interlochen students are sharing what they say they experienced — ranging from inappropriate comments to sexual assault. Attorney Matthew Curtis, a senior shareholder at Sommers Schwartz, P.C., who represents several survivors, said the report exposes a deeply troubling pattern.
“It was basically a free for all there,” Curtis said.
Curtis says the report brings long-hidden allegations into the open, and he believes it reflects a systemic problem.
“It was the same thing over and over again,” Curtis said.
What the report reveals
The report does not name survivors and withholds the names of most accused adults. However, in cases where investigators received multiple firsthand accounts of repeated and pervasive conduct — and where naming individuals would not impact any law enforcement action because those individuals are deceased — the school made the decision to identify them publicly.
Byron Hanson, a faculty member and administrator from 1960 to 2015, was the initial subject of the investigation. Investigators received seven independent direct reports of sexual misconduct involving Hanson in the 1960s and 1970s, along with multiple corroborating accounts from other alumni.
John “Jack” Hood, a faculty member and administrator from 1963 to 1979 who later returned in seasonal roles until 2004, was the subject of four independent direct reports of sexual misconduct.
Charlie McWhorter, a former trustee from 1970 to 1999, had two independent direct reports of sexual misconduct against him, along with multiple corroborating accounts from alumni.
In one additional case, the accused individual had already been criminally convicted, making his name part of the public record. Thomas Clower, an arts faculty member from 2003 to 2005, was convicted of criminal sexual conduct in 2005 after Interlochen reported his conduct to law enforcement and terminated his employment.
The report also references Jeffrey Epstein, who attended the school in the 1960s and later became a donor. Two former students say Epstein paid for their flights and was frequently inappropriate with them physically.
All adults named in the report had ties to the school, and the report makes clear none of them are currently employed there. Because the incidents date back to the 1950s, more than one-third of the adults identified are now deceased.
How the school responded — then, and now
Investigators and school officials contacted adults who were still living. Some did not respond, a handful did — some denied the claims, and a small number admitted to wrongdoing. One accused adult told investigators he became “obsessed” with a former student.
Many survivors say they did not tell anyone about what happened. Others who did report said the school seemed eager to “wrap it up and get it out of the way.”
Curtis says the findings point to a failure at the highest level.
“What the report really demonstrates is that there was a total institutional failure to protect these kids,” Curtis said.
Interlochen President Trey Devey responded to the findings in a written statement, calling them “heartbreaking” and contrary to everything the school stands for. Devey said the school is grateful to those who came forward and is deeply sorry for the harm they experienced.
A call for legislative action
Curtis is urging the Michigan Legislature to pass a law giving survivors a path to pursue justice. He says current Michigan law blocks many survivors from doing so because of the state’s statute of limitations.
The full 97-page report is available on Interlochen’s website.