According to a report by The New York Times, professor Jason Lieb, a former molecular biologist at the University of Chicago, resigned from his position before he could be fired for sexually assaulting a graduate student too intoxicated to consent to sex.
Before his tenure at the University of Chicago, he was a professor at UNC for 13 years. According to sources quoted by the Times, during his hiring interviews at the University of Chicago, he admitted to faculty that an unwanted contact claim was filed against him during his time at UNC.
While the editorial board understands UNC is severely restricted by personnel privacy laws in how it can publicly discuss Lieb, internally, UNC should investigate the case if it has not already done so. UNC cannot tolerate a culture where sexual harassment or assault in research settings are overlooked — even if stamping out such a culture puts significant grant money at risk.
Lieb was one of the most accomplished scientists in his field in the entire country, and he has received millions of dollars in federal grants.
UNC should examine the power dynamics of a culture where sexual harassment or assault in research settings could be overlooked because of interests in acquiring grant money. It should take active steps to determine if such a culture exists at UNC and aggressively stamp it out if it does.
This could be done in a variety of ways: by surveying the experiences of researchers, holding panels exploring the issue, and ensuring that the hiring of women faculty, especially in scientific disciplines, is a top priority.
As an editorial by the science journal Nature points out, no one knows how many senior scientists have been disciplined by universities for sexual harassment. Significant anecdotal evidence supports the idea that research labs dominated by male senior scientists are places that tolerate sexual harassment and create impossible choices for women scientists.
This perspective is a good reminder that the experiences of undergraduate women are those most often highlighted by discussions of sexual assault and harassment on college campuses, but the problem is not restricted only to undergraduates. Fighting the existence of rape culture in all corners of the University is especially important given the negative light UNC has already been placed in.
The revealing documentary “The Hunting Ground” on sexual assault on college campuses featured UNC. UNC was the subject of national headlines for the cases and activism of Landen Gambill and Andrea Pino. A survey indicating one in four undergraduate women at UNC experience a form of sexual assault also made headlines.
