Ohio University trustees vote to fire journalism professor
Ohio University’s Board of Trustees unanimously voted Friday morning to revoke the tenure of and terminate journalism professor Yusuf Kalyango, who had been accused of sexually harassing at least two female students.
Kalyango had been the subject of multiple university investigations and lawsuits over the past several years after two women accused him of sexual misconduct. A Title IX Office investigation later found that Kalyango sexually harassed one of the women, a graduate student.
The trustees served as the final arbitrator in a years-long series of investigations and lawsuits over whether or not to terminate Kalyango and revoke his tenure.
Kalyango and his attorney, Gregory Beck, did not immediately respond to a request for comment by The Dispatch.
In 2018, the OU Office for Equity and Civil Rights Compliance found that Kalyango had violated the university’s policy by: engaging in sexual harassment by quid pro quo; creating a hostile work environment; and harassing a student based on her sex.
Several months later, the University Professional Ethics Committee unanimously agreed that OU should begin a “loss of tenure” procedure for Kalyango, widely viewed as the most severe punishment in academia.
The Faculty Senate committee was asked in December 2020 to review Kalyango’s tenure revocation appeal and voted 5-1 in favor of Kalyango’s appeal. Before coming to a decision, the committee reviewed previous university reports and heard witness testimony during a two-day hearing and then met over four days to deliberate Kalyango’s appeal.
The Board of Trustees held a 4 1/2hour emergency meeting in February to determine whether to accept a Faculty Senate committee recommendation to reinstate Kalyango. They voted to postpone making a formal decision until their April board meetings and asked that a reconsideration report be produced by the Faculty Senate committee.
Kalyango had still been employed by
Ohio University in a research capacity with no student contact. He came to OU in 2008 and taught broadcast news and international journalism courses.
The board’s resolution affirmed that the testimonies of two former students – Tess Herman and Lindsay Boyd – who had said they had been sexually harassed by Kalyango were enough evidence to inform their decision.
“We are especially grateful to the two women who courageously stepped forward to share their stories and make public their painful experiences with sexual misconduct on our campus. These brave women and other people in our community took many difficult steps to bring intolerable behavior to light,” OU Board of Trustees Chair Janelle Coleman said.
“The healing process I envision is not one that will dim this light, but rather intensify our efforts to ensure our community is a safe place to learn and work,” she said.
In 2017, Herman, a former Ohio University graduate student, brought her case against Kalyango to OU’S Title IX office. She said that Kalyango made several uncomfortable advances toward her in person and over text messages.
Just before a university trip to Rwanda with the Young African Leaders Initiative, Herman learned that he had reserved a room at a resort hotel for the two of them to share, saying it was the only room available. After she rejected his offer, Herman said Kalyango became cold toward her and severely criticized her work on the trip, according to an Equity and Civil Rights Compliance report.
In 2019, Herman filed a federal lawsuit in the Southern District of Ohio against the university, alleging that it violated her civil rights by allowing Kalyango and other faculty members to abuse their power after she was harassed and retaliated against on the Rwanda trip. The case resulted in a $90,000 settlement.
Boyle reported Kalyango to OU’S Title IX Office in 2018, saying the professor made multiple unwanted advances on school-sponsored trips when she was a student in 2011 and 2012. shendrix@dispatch.com @sheridan120