An investigation by the University of California, Irvine, has concluded that one of its most famous faculty members, geneticist Francisco Ayala, sexually harassed colleagues and a student. Ayala resigned as of yesterday (July 1) and the school will remove his name from the School of Biological Sciences, the central science library, scholarships, and endowed chairs, reports the Los Angeles Times.
“I deeply regret that what I have always thought of as the good manners of a European gentleman—to greet women colleagues warmly, with a kiss to both cheeks, to compliment them on their beauty—made colleagues I respect uncomfortable,” Ayala says in a statement, according to the newspaper. “It was never my intent to do so.”
Four women complained to the university about Ayala: professor Kathleen Treseder, assistant teaching professor Jessica Pratt, assistant dean Benedicte Shipley, and graduate student Michelle Herrera. An attorney representing three of the women tells Science Ayala ...
