BERKELEY, Calif. ― The University of California, Berkeley chancellor, who critics alleged was too lenient when handling sexual harassment cases involving high-profile faculty members, has resigned his post.
University of California President Janet Napolitano said Tuesday that she accepted UC Berkeley Chancellor Nicholas Dirks’ resignation and that a search for his successor would start immediately.
Dirks plans to stay on until a new successor is named and in place, Napolitano said.
Dirks said in a message to the campus community he plans to become a full-time professor at the university.
“I have come to the personal decision that the time is right for me to step aside and allow someone else to take up the financial and institutional challenges ahead of us,” Dirks wrote.
Dirks took office as UC Berkeley’s 10th chancellor on June 1, 2013 and during his tenure launched major initiatives to strengthen undergraduate education and to optimize fundraising. But he came under fire for the way he handled sexual harassment cases involving faculty members.
In one case, Sujit Choudhry, the former dean of the law school, received only a temporary pay cut and orders to undergo counseling as punishment following an investigation substantiated claims that he repeatedly kissed and touched a subordinate.
