Howard University is backing Phylicia Rashad in the wake of her tweet celebrating Bill Cosby's overturned conviction and prison release, but it also acknowledges that she could have gone about celebrating her happiness better.

After the Cosby news broke, Phylicia, who was recently named Dean of Howard's College of Fine Arts, tweeted, "FINALLY!!!! A terrible wrong is being righted- a miscarriage of justice is corrected!" The statement drew severe backlash. The former "Cosby Show" actress later said she supports victims of sexual assault but refused to apologize for her tweet.
In a statement to TMZ, Howard said, "Personal positions of University leadership do not reflect Howard University's policies. Survivors of sexual assault will always be our priority. We will continue to advocate for survivors fully and support their right to be heard. Howard will stand with survivors and challenge systems that would deny them justice."
While directly speaking about Phylicia, the school said, "Her initial tweet lacked sensitivity towards survivors of sexual assault."
On June 30, Cosby was shockingly released from prison due to a legal technicality. He served nearly three years of his three-to-10-year prison sentence for felony sexual assault.

After his release, Cosby tweeted, "I have never changed my stance nor my story. I have always maintained my innocence.Thank you to all my fans, supporters and friends who stood by me through this ordeal. Special thanks to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court for upholding the rule of law."