Boston University Office of the President

Dr. Robert A. Brown, President
One Silber Way
Boston, Massachusetts 02215
T 617-353-2200 F 617-353-3278

April 12, 2019

Dear Members of the Boston University Faculty:

I am writing to inform you of the outcome of tenure revocation proceedings concerning Dr. David Marchant, a faculty member in the Department of Earth & Environment in the College of Arts & Sciences.

The University’s Equal Opportunity Office (EOO) found that Dr. Marchant violated the University’s policies prohibiting sexual harassment during field expeditions in Antarctica in 1997 and in 1999–2000. University Provost Jean Morrison upheld the EOO findings and determined that the violations justified the initiation of proceedings to terminate Dr. Marchant’s faculty appointment. In accordance with the Faculty Handbook, Dr. Marchant requested and received a hearing before a five-member faculty panel tasked with recommending an appropriate sanction. The panel determined that Dr. Marchant’s conduct did not warrant termination and recommended instead that he be suspended without pay for a period of three years, after which he should be allowed to return to the University in good standing.

As president of the University, I then faced the task to accept or reject the faculty panel’s recommendation, which ran contrary to that of the provost. After careful review of all relevant evidence, including the investigative reports from the EOO, I decided that the appropriate sanction in this matter is termination.

Earlier today, the Board of Trustees upheld my recommendation to terminate Dr. Marchant’s faculty appointment.

I appreciate that this matter has been difficult for many of Dr. Marchant’s colleagues and others in the University community. I want to take this opportunity to affirm the University’s commitment to maintaining a living and learning environment free from harassment of any kind, and I ask you to be part of that commitment as we move forward.

Sincerely,

Robert A. Brown
President