Founder of UW Alt-Right Group Set Fire to Two Black Churches

    Chancellor to Ask Regents to Review Policy on Criminal Background Check for Applicants

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    Daniel Dropik, the University of Wisconsin student who is looking to start an “alt-right” student organization, pleaded guilty and served five years in federal prison for setting fire to two black churches in 2005. The incident is listed in the Southern Poverty Law Center’s hate crime registry.

    One of the phone numbers listed on the UW website is disconnected and the other was not accepting new messages on Thursday. Dropik did not respond to emails seeking comment.

    According to an Associate Press story from 2006, Daniel Dropik of Oconomowoc, 22 at the time, set a fire at Greater Love Missionary Baptist Church on April 16, 2005, and at Trinity African Methodist Episcopal Church in Lansing, Michigan the next day.

    Judge Rupolph Randa at the time said Dropik suffered from “deep psychological and psychiatric problems,” but that the fires were racially motivated. He sentenced Dropik to five years in prison and three years of extended supervision and ordered him to pay $39,697 in restitution.

    An online profile on the site meetup.com shows a “Daniel D” whose photo matches Dropik’s and describes Daniel D as “an ex-felon, having turned my life around.”

    The UW Registrar’s office confirmed that Dropik is enrolled as a student, and he is also listed as a lead student web developer in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. His LinkedIn profile says he’s a software trainer and an “academic overachiever.”

    Dropik told reporter Velena Jones that the student group he’s trying to form — a local chapter of the American Freedom Party, a recognized hate group — is not a hate group, but “a love group.”

    In a statement emailed to the campus community Thursday, UW Chancellor Rebecca Blank sought to alleviate fears but said the school is limited by the law.

    “Like many university systems, the UW System’s admission application does not ask for or allow us to consider a student’s criminal history as part of the admissions process,” Blank said in the statement. “This is intended to ensure that students who have made mistakes, but paid their debt to society, are not prevented from accessing education. In light of this situation, I will request that the Board of Regents consider a review of this policy.

    “The safety of our campus community is my top priority. I recognize the mere presence of this activity is concerning. But handing out political information and expression objectionable, even hateful, viewpoints is not illegal nor a violation of any campus policy.  

    “At this point, we have no information to suggest a specific safety threat to individuals or campus. Any time we become aware of a potential safety concern, we work with law enforcement and other partners to gather information and determine whether laws or campus policies are being violated. We continue to track this situation closely given the student’s history.”