An independent investigation has concluded a leading expert in adult clergy sexual abuse (ACSA) crossed several boundaries he often warned others to avoid.

A Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment (GRACE) report has found credible evidence that David Pooler blurred the line between professional and personal relationships and engaged in verbal or virtual sexual misconduct.

Pooler is a professor in the Diana R. Garland School of Social Work at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, and specializes in aid to religious and spiritual abuse survivors. He was a member of the advisory board for Restored Voices Collective (RVC), a nonprofit that provides connection and support for women who have experienced ACSA, when the investigation began.

“In evaluating the evidence, GRACE finds it difficult to reconcile Pooler’s ACSA expertise and thorough clinical understanding of power dynamics, trauma triggers, and manipulation tactics with the persona of unawareness he presented regarding his own reported interpersonal boundary violations,” the report states.

RVC initiated the investigation after an anonymous post in September 2025 to its Facebook community accused Pooler of “inappropriate conduct” that “showed a complete disregard for my welfare as a survivor of clergy abuse.”

“Honestly this entire thing reminded me of the entire ACSA situation I went through, but in an even more twisted way,” the post stated. “I trusted him completely because of his public image and reputation, and learned this lesson the hard way. This has been deeply re-traumatizing when all I was trying to do was heal.”

The GRACE report, which was released this month, states that RVC leadership decided to seek external intervention within three days of learning of the allegations. They contacted GRACE within a week and suspended Pooler from the board during the investigation.

RVC shared the complete GRACE report with its members to allow them to engage directly with its findings.

“We recognize how deeply painful this news is for many survivors of adult clergy sexual abuse,” reads a statement from RVC. “David Pooler was known by many in this community as an advocate, academic researcher, and therapist, and we understand that this may be difficult and painful information to take in. All survivors have already experienced profound harm from people and institutions they trusted, and we recognize the weight of this moment for a survivor community that has already carried so much.”

As a result of the investigation’s findings, Pooler will no longer serve in any capacity with RVC.

Pooler did not respond to a request for comment.

Multiple survivors report allegations

GRACE conducted 18 interviews, received 41 survey responses and reviewed 39 documents and additional social media posts during its investigation. The report states that allegations of verbal or virtual sexual misconduct and professional boundary violations are credible.

“Collective witness accounts describe a pattern of behavior corroborated by contemporaneous disclosures and consistent themes of boundary-blurring and inappropriate sexual discourse across different settings,” the report states. “While several witnesses reported appropriate boundaries in their professional interactions with Dr. Pooler, these accounts do not overcome the corroborated reports of explicit, sexual, and suggestive language used in other contexts.”

One woman told investigators Pooler had been “integral” in helping her process and disclose ACSA and that he helped save her marriage. But she had a very different experience when she sought his professional advice while they were both attending a Restore Conference, an event organized by Roys Report (RR).

The woman told investigators that “a lot of drinking had happened” before she approached Pooler, who responded to her questions using phrases her former abuser had used. Another witness reported that Pooler sat close to the woman, touched her and “told her she was sexy.”

Another ACSA survivor, who was supervised by Pooler as a student at Baylor, said Pooler had a “locker room type of humor” and would laugh “like a frat boy” after reading graphic descriptions of sexual abuse. She found this antithetical to his “public positioning as an advocate,” the report states.

She also reported that he attempted to “assert dominance” over her, often saying that he was “the expert” while dismissing her input. She also said he asked her sexually invasive questions and said her resulting distress was what he wanted to activate in victims, according to the report.

“(She) relayed to GRACE that she experienced a physical reaction to these interactions with Pooler that required emergency medical care, and provided corroborative medical records,” the report states.

The woman filed a report with Baylor alleging a violation of Title IX, a federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in educational settings. When contacted by RR for comment, a Baylor spokesperson said the university is aware of “recent reports” and takes “allegations of this nature very seriously.”

“We are in the process of looking into this matter in accordance with our institutional policies and procedures,” the statement reads. “Baylor is fully committed to supporting responsible research practices, in addition to adherence to internal and external policies. The university will continue to monitor the situation, and we will decline to comment further.”

Pooler told GRACE investigators that he did not have sexual conversations with the woman beyond what was relevant to their educational research. After describing his initial interactions with the woman as positive, he said she became “vindictive” and wanted him to lose his job.

“Pooler’s negative characterizations of (the woman) are consistent with a common manipulation tactic utilized by offenders to deny wrongdoing, attack the credibility of the victim, and frame themselves as the victim, thereby reversing the roles to evade accountability and undermine the reporter’s legitimate concerns,” the report states.

Another woman, who knew Pooler through their advocacy work, said Pooler knew that her former abuser used back-rubbing as a grooming tactic. So, she considered it a red flag when Pooler approached her at a conference and began rubbing her back, which caused her to tense up.

“(The woman) expressed distress that such contact would come from a professional who was informed on adult clergy sexual abuse (ACSA) and aware of her specific story and triggers,” the report states.

Concerns about social media use

Several witnesses reported concerns about Pooler blurring professional and personal lines, including on social media.

One woman told investigators Pooler sent friend requests on multiple platforms the same day they had their first conversation. Another said she was Facebook friends with Pooler at the same time she received professional counseling from him.

Professional guidelines for social workers require them to use separate social media accounts for professional and personal purposes.

“Social workers should be aware that posting personal information on professional Web sites or other media might cause boundary confusion, inappropriate dual relationships, or harm to clients,” according to the National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics.

Pooler created separate professional and personal social media accounts after his interview with GRACE. However, the report states a “prominent witness” still saw red flags.

“(The witness contended) Pooler applied these new boundaries selectively, removing certain connections while maintaining ties with other similarly situated advocates and professionals,” the report states. “As a result, the witness expressed concern that Pooler’s public pivot to ethical boundaries was a ‘pretense’ to quietly sever specific relationships rather than a genuine professional shift.”

GRACE found several areas where Pooler’s behavior appears to match warning signs of therapeutic abuse, as defined by the Therapy Exploitation Link Line, an advocacy network. They include the therapist talking about personal problems, making sexual jokes and interacting with clients outside of a professional setting.

The report states that Pooler admitted to some of the allegations but that he did “not necessarily reflect an embrace of accountability.”

“Instead, these statements can be understood either as inculpatory or as a preemptive defensive strategy — acknowledging generalized, boundary-related errors while simultaneously maintaining ignorance regarding core allegations of misconduct,” the report states. “This tension between admitting to abstract boundary issues while denying awareness of any specific harmful incidents functions as a nuanced form of minimization.”

The report lauded RVC leadership for taking prompt steps to address the allegations and included several recommendations to prevent abuse and improve its response in the future.

Ann Marie Shambaugh has reported as a print journalist in multiple states, including currently in Carmel, Indiana.