UC Berkeley Campus Provost Claude Steele Resigns Following Criticism
BERKELEY (CBS SF) -- The University of California at Berkeley's Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Claude Steele announced his resignation Friday, so that he might spend more time with his ailing wife.
Steele, the top academic officer at the UC Berkeley, has resigned following criticism that he was too lenient on the now-former law school dean accused of sexual harassment by his assistant.
Steele became a target of angry faculty and students last month after the law school dean's assistant, Tyann Sorrell, alleged in a lawsuit that her boss, Sujit Choudhry, kissed, hugged and touched her repeatedly, but received from the provost only a temporary pay cut and orders to undergo counseling as punishment.
UC Berkeley Chancellor Nicholas Dirks informed the UC Berkeley community about Steele's decision to step down in a statement Friday, explaining that Steele would leave the position but would be joining UC Berkeley's Department of Psychology full-time in the fall and continue his career as a writer.
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Steele wrote a message to the UC community explaining his decision to step down from the position which he held for only two years:
"Alas, my wife's ongoing health challenges remain quite significant, and this is simply not a time in our lives where I can afford to further sacrifice our time together. The choice has thus become clear: I can no longer offer UC Berkeley the time and level of commitment it needs from its EVCP, while at the same time being a part of my family in the way I want to be."
Dirks encouraged the community to wish Claude's wife, Dorothy Steele, a rapid return to good health and keep her in their thoughts and prayers.
By Hannah Albarazi - Follow her on Twitter: @hannahalbarazi.
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