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Thursday could be a pivotal day for the University of Rochester

It could be a pivotal day for the University of Rochester on Thursday.  It all revolves around the allegations in a harassment complaint filed by several current and former faculty and students.

The university commissioned the investigation by former U.S. Attorney and former Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Mary Jo White, after the controversy that erupted over accusations made by several current and former faculty and grad students.

They allege that they were sexually harassed by Florian Jaeger, a professor in the Brain and Cognitive Sciences Department. He denied the charges and was placed on administrative leave.

Besides a complaint filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, those who brought the action also have a lawsuit pending in federal court.  

Anger over how the university administration handled the initial response to these complaints has also resulted in an open letter by more than 200 professors around the country condemning UR officials for their response to the allegations.

How the recommendations from the outside investigation will be received remains an open question, with some students and faculty already having voiced concerns about the process.

The report from Mary Jo White will be available on line at 12:45pm on Thursday, with a news conference to follow.

People who filed the EEOC complaints and the lawsuit will hold their own press conference later in the day.

WXXI News will provide coverage of the report, including a special hour of Connections with Evan Dawson beginning at 1:00pm, and the full report and follow up coverage will be posted online at wxxinews.org
 

Randy Gorbman is WXXI's director of news and public affairs. Randy manages the day-to-day operations of WXXI News on radio, television, and online.