Case Western Reserve University: BuzzFeed reported on an occasion when a Dean at
CWRU induced a student to submit a harassment complaint about discussions we had
that made her feel patronized and uncomfortable. Since BuzzFeed also claims to have
seen correspondence between the student and the administration, the reporters would
have been aware that while the university wrote that the “behavior as alleged by the
student could constitute a violation of the University’s Sexual Harassment policy,”
following discussions with the student and myself, she, I and the university agreed to
an informal resolution of the complaint. The information I provided CWRU and
BuzzFeed included the following: I was surprised by the complaint because the student
and I had many discussions about science communication in a variety of contexts. I had
asked her on one occasion—I believe it was when she requested to accompany me to a
BBC radio interview I was taping off campus—about whether it was difficult being the
only woman in one of her physics classes and whether she was harassed at all. I meant
it out of concern, as a former chair of the department, but apparently it was not
taken that way. Also, one time she was interviewing me in my office and apparently I
closed the door, which would not have been unusual since my office opened onto a
coffee lounge for my research group and it was often noisy. While I do not recall, I
apparently asked her if she wanted to get something to eat. Again, this was not
unusual, as I often choose to agree to interviews over meals so I can kill two birds with
one stone. I also often have meals or coffee with students, as do many of my
colleagues. Moreover, because she had once asked if I would meet her off campus at
a coffee house for an interview (I didn’t go, not because I felt it was inappropriate,
but because I didn’t have time), I wouldn’t have thought my request would make her
uncomfortable. I had no inkling that it did until she later wrote about her concerns in
a student paper. Moreover, there were interactions after the interview which gave no
indication of discomfort. She had asked for a recommendation for a fellowship to
attend a conference in Boston I was speaking at and I wrote one for her. There, she
reached out to my wife and me and asked to share a taxi ride. She was quite outgoing
and irreverent, both of which I encourage. That is why I was surprised to later learn
of her article in the student paper complaining about the language I used. BuzzFeed
misrepresented the context, the nature of the complaint and its resolution. They
instead focused on CWRU’s surprising directive almost 5 months later, after I had
already left the University, for the Dean or Physics Chair to approve return visits. I did
return various times over the following years to lecture or talk to colleagues.
