Duane Kelderman Discusses Fredy Chen

by Michael De Witt, Editor-in-Chief

Over the last two weeks Calvin Seminary has been rocked by the confusing events surrounding the arrest of one of its students. As rumors swirl though the hallways and student center hard facts are quickly mixed and molded into tales of fiction. Kerux invited Dr. Duane Kelderman, Vice President for Administration at CTS, to respond via an email interview.

Kerux: Good afternoon, Dr. Kelderman. The recent events involving seminary student Fredy Chen have prompted a lot of curiosity and a few concerns within the CTS community. As often happens in the case of an information vacuum there has been a lot of talk, much of it contradictory, among students about what exactly happened over on Batchawana. Would you like to take this opportunity to expand at all on the seminary's email of last week or to set the record straight on what, exactly, occurred on October 2 and 3?

Kelderman: Over the weekend of September 29-30, we as seminary leaders learned that Fredy Chen had made some statements that raised concerns for Fredy's own safety and the safety of others. Over the course of several days, seminary officials and other professionals had conversations with Fredy that led to the confiscation of an unregistered firearm and illegal drugs. The police presence at Batchawana on October 2 was to confiscate the gun. The police presence On October 3 was to bring Fredy into protective custody where he remained until October 16 when Fredy was transferred to the custody of the Grand Rapids Police Department for alleged violations of Michigan state law.

Kerux: The Calvin College Chimes has reported that the search of Mr. Chen’s residence was initiated after a student employee tipped the seminary off, a claim that some dispute. Can you clarify what specifically prompted to police to visit the apartment in the first place?

Kelderman: The Chimes report was quoting a Grand Rapids Press account that was incorrect. We were not tipped off by a student employee or by any student. As stated above, we as seminary leaders learned that Fredy Chen had made some statements that raised concerns for Fredy's own safety and the safety of others. I can't be any more specific about the context in which Fredy made these statements and the way we learned of them.

Kerux: Mr. Chen is reportedly still in protective custody, both "for the student's and the community's safety." Meanwhile he has been banned from the campus indefinitely. Is there hope for Mr. Chen to return to CTS down the road? If so, and especially in light of recent events at places like Virginia Tech, what kind of requirements/safeguards might be put in place to protect all parties involved? Is there any precedent to this situation in the seminary’s history?

Kelderman: There is no precedent for this in CTS history. At this point Fredy has been suspended but not expelled from CTS. But I think it's safe to say that Fredy will not be a student at CTS in the future. The Virginia Tech killings are the immediate national context in which we have had to make dozens of decisions for the past two weeks. The Cleveland school gunfire and the undisclosed murder at Eastern Michigan University are additional examples of the need for the seminary to take very seriously any potential threat to the safety of students and the broader community. For the most part we have not had to choose between helping Fredy and protecting the campus and broader community. We have done both. But we have clearly understood that our first responsibility is to ensure the safety of the campus and broader community.

Kerux: Are these events a sign that the seminary's student screening policies work? Will anything be changed as a result of this case?

Kelderman: To date our current policies have served us well in dealing with this problem. Incidents of this magnitude automatically lead to a review of policies and practices to incorporate any additional things we have learned. One of the things with which we have been particularly pleased is the excellent cooperation between the college and seminary in dealing with this matter and the excellent service of Campus Safety.

Kerux: Cases like this have a tendency to attract a certain degree of public scrutiny. There is a lot of potential here for a juicy story with an intriguing cast of characters on the local news: The troubled youth, the staid religious institution, police interventions, etc. Throughout everything, however, the seminary has remained very tight-lipped about this matter, both with the external media and with its own students. How much of this is for Mr. Chen's protection and how much is for the seminary's? When will more information be available?

Kelderman: Every night during the week of October 1 to 5 I went home and said to my wife Jeannette, "The price of liberty is very high. It's worth it, but it's very high." I was referring to all the very important protections that citizens in this nation have. Privacy protections. Student confidentiality protections. Protections from illegal searches and seizures. To whatever extent we've been "tight-lipped," we haven't chosen that strategy as much as we have been constrained by so many rights and protections that Fredy and every other CTS student have. These rights are precious and we are grateful to live in a nation that offers its citizens these rights.

The only reason we've been able to say as much as we have said is that these rights are not absolute but exist in tension with the safety rights of the public. As a seminary, we only have interest in giving additional information if it serves to increase public safety. Hence our campus wide notification this week (Oct. 16) of Fredy's transfer to the custody of the Grand Rapids Police Department. We can't predict what additional information, if any, will be forthcoming. But we will do whatever is necessary and possible to protect the campus and broader community.

Kerux: Is Calvin Theological Seminary in regular contact with Mr. Chen at this time? Is there any way for students and friends to get in touch with him?

Kelderman: We are in regular contact with Fredy through various parties who are deeply committed to Fredy's healing. It would not be appropriate or wise for students to be in touch with Fredy.

Kerux: How can members of the CTS community support Mr. Chen during this period?

Kelderman: We have communicated to Fredy that CTS is deeply grieved by all that has happened and that CTS is praying for Fredy's safety and healing. Most students did not know Fredy. He had only been with us for a month. For some of the students who were getting to know Fredy, this has been a traumatic experience. Fredy knows all of this. He knows that people at CTS deeply care for him, even if they don't know him! The best way for the CTS community to support Fredy is to care for him, to grieve this whole sad episode, and to pray for Fredy.

Kerux: Thanks again for your time and good luck dealing with this difficult situation in the coming weeks and months.

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