The commission which investigated how the University of Rochester handled sexual harassment allegations against Professor Florian Jeager reported that Jaeger’s conduct towards women was was “inappropriate, unprofessional and offensive,” but it didn’t rise to the level of violating federal law.
Former federal prosecutor Mary Jo White, headed the commission, which was appointed by the trustees in September after grad students and faculty members filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. They claimed Jaeger had harassed them and caused a toxic work environment, and they faced retaliation for complaining about Jaeger’s conduct to university officials.
Allegations of sexual harassment involving Jaeger were initially investigated by the University, which found that the professor’s conduct did not violate any applicable university policy or law. The Mary Jo White investigation found that was true, but said that was a legal, not an ethical or moral judgement.
White’s recommendations include: a stricter intimate relationships policy, have sexual harassment claims handled by an office independent from the university’s office of counsel, and amending the university’s policy on sexual harassment.