Incident 7486 - Resolved
Role:
Faculty
Position:
Department Chair, Professor
Discipline:
Arts and Humanities
Specific Discipline:
English Writing Humanities
Outcome Year:
2014
Outcome Category:
Suspended / Leave / Restrictions
Quote:
"An Ohio State University investigator found last year the then-chair of the university’s English department had “created a hostile work environment” that made female administrative staff feel “harassed and intimidated.”
"Knowles agreed on Dec. 12, 2013 to take a voluntary leave from his position as chair. He was permitted to continue teaching during the 2014 spring semester because the misconduct concerned his role as department chair, not as a professor, according to the report."
That English professor, Sebastian Knowles, is now a visiting professor at Northwestern for Spring Quarter 2015.
A series of interviews conducted by the investigator with department staff painted Knowles as “volatile” and described violations of Ohio State’s policies on sexual harassment and workplace violence. The investigator found Knowles threatened and intimidated department staff. According to the report, staff said he initiated “inappropriate and unwelcome physical contact” and made “inappropriate comments of a sexual nature” on several occasions."
"Knowles agreed on Dec. 12, 2013 to take a voluntary leave from his position as chair. He was permitted to continue teaching during the 2014 spring semester because the misconduct concerned his role as department chair, not as a professor, according to the report."
That English professor, Sebastian Knowles, is now a visiting professor at Northwestern for Spring Quarter 2015.
A series of interviews conducted by the investigator with department staff painted Knowles as “volatile” and described violations of Ohio State’s policies on sexual harassment and workplace violence. The investigator found Knowles threatened and intimidated department staff. According to the report, staff said he initiated “inappropriate and unwelcome physical contact” and made “inappropriate comments of a sexual nature” on several occasions."
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