Most people who live in Massachusetts have long been proud that their state is home to one of the nation’s most highly regarded scientific research institutions. Many students from all over the country and all over the world work tirelessly for the opportunity to learn from the experts and professionals who teach there. Scientists themselves know the regard given to holding a position at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the chance to be part of groundbreaking technologies.
All of this, however, does not mean that MIT can forever remain shielded from the realities of human nature or today’s society. The school has experienced a series of incidents recently that expose some potential misconduct.
According to ScienceMag.org, one of the incidents involves the alleged cover up by a lab director of the relationship between MIT and a donor who was a known pedophile. The lab director has subsequently resigned his position due once the nature of the relationship was disclosed. More recently, MIT has terminated the employment of a man who was the head of a group in its Media Lab after reports regarding sexual harassment surfaced. The man had been a faculty member for 23 years.
Details of the alleged harassment have not been disclosed but all MIT Media Lab employees will now participate in required sexual harassment training as part of the school’s response to the incident. No date for when the training is expected to begin has yet been reported. These events highlight that the need for vigilance in reporting harassing behavior.
