Tuesday, August 09, 2016

Linda Katehi resigns as chancellor of UC Davis




BERKELEY’S NEWS · TUESDAY, AUGUST 9, 2016



BY CASSANDRA VOGEL | STAFFLAST UPDATED 2 MINS AGO




UC Davis Chancellor, Linda P.B. Katehi photographed in the reading room at Shields Library on the UC Davis campus.


Linda Katehi stepped down as chancellor of UC Davis on Tuesday after an investigation led by the UC Office of the President found she had violated university policies.

In May, Katehi was placed on 90-day paid administrative leave to allow outside investigators to look into allegations that Katehi may have violated university policies. UCOP had appointed Melinda Haag, a former U.S. attorney for the Northern District of California and current San Francisco attorney, to lead the independent investigation.

According to a UCOP statement, the investigators determined “the chancellor had exercised poor judgment, not been candid with University leadership, and violated multiple University policies.”

The investigation was conducted amid controversy regarding UC Davis administration’s decision to pay consultants more than $175,000 to filter search results pertaining to police pepper-spraying student protesters in 2011, as reported by the Sacramento Bee. Both the pepper spray incident and the subsequent clean-up efforts occurred while Katehi was serving as chancellor.

2016-2017 ASUCD President Alex P. Lee said UC Davis students were relieved at the news of Katehi’s decision to step down, adding that her resignation was “long overdue.”

“I’m seeing all over social media a lot of the same kind of relief — in a good way — some celebration, a lot of people talking about the content of some of the report and what UCOP had said,” Lee said. “We still want the results of the report published, we still want to talk about accountability — this is just the start of the road.”

In the meantime, UC Davis Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor Ralph Hexter will continue to serve as the acting chancellor, while Katehi will resume her position on the UC Davis faculty. A search for her a permanent replacement will begin immediately, according to UCOP.

“Today’s news ends a period of uncertainty at UC Davis,” Hexter said in a statement. “The resolution announced by UC President Janet Napolitano permits us to focus all our efforts on moving the campus forward so that we can serve California, the nation and the world ever more effectively.”

Check back for updates.

Cassandra Vogel is an assistant news editor. Contact her atcvogel@dailycal.org and follow her on Twitter at @cass_vogxz.



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