BOSTON — A Harvard Law School professor who became a lightning rod on the Ivy League campus for working on the legal defense team of Harvey Weinstein will not…
BOSTON — A Harvard Law School professor who became a lightning rod on the Ivy League campus for working on the legal defense team of Harvey Weinstein will not be renewed as a Harvard faculty dean, the university said Saturday.
Ronald Sullivan Jr. and his wife Stephanie Robinson will not continue as faculty deans for the school’s Winthrop House when their term ends after next month.
Rakesh Khurana, dean of Harvard College, announced the decision in an email to residents of the school’s Winthrop House, calling the situation “untenable” and saying it was “informed by a number of considerations.”
Sullivan has been under fire from students since January when he emerged as one of the attorneys representing Weinstein in the media mogul’s upcoming trial where he faces multiple sex-crime charges.
But the controversy surrounding Sullivan – who presides over the Winthrop House with Robinson, his wife and also a Harvard law professor – escalated further amid recent reports from the student-run Harvard Crimson newspaper about numerous complaints against the couple since 2016 about their handling of house affairs.
“Over the last few weeks, students and staff have continued to communicate concerns about the climate in the Winthrop House to the college,” Khurana said in the email. “The concerns expressed have been serious and numerous.
“The actions that have been taken to improve the climate have been ineffective, and the noticeable lack of faculty dean presence during critical moments has further deteriorated the climate in the house. I have concluded that the situation in the house is untenable.”
Harvard has faculty deans to lead and reside at each of its 12 buildings that house undergraduate students.
