James Braxton Peterson, an English professor and director of Africana studies at Lehigh University, has resigned from his position amid a sexual-misconduct investigation, according to an email sent to university faculty and staff members from the provost’s office on Tuesday.
Several people have made allegations of sexual and other types of misconduct against Mr. Peterson, the email said. He was placed on paid leave and barred from entering campus while the university conducted an investigation. On November 7, the Lehigh community was told that allegations had been made against a faculty member, but the professor was not identified then.
We're sorry. Something went wrong.
We are unable to fully display the content of this page.
The most likely cause of this is a content blocker on your computer or network.
Please allow access to our site, and then refresh this page.
You may then be asked to log in, create an account if you don't already have one,
or subscribe.
If you continue to experience issues, please contact us at 202-466-1032 or help@chronicle.com
James Braxton Peterson, an English professor and director of Africana studies at Lehigh University, has resigned from his position amid a sexual-misconduct investigation, according to an email sent to university faculty and staff members from the provost’s office on Tuesday.
Several people have made allegations of sexual and other types of misconduct against Mr. Peterson, the email said. He was placed on paid leave and barred from entering campus while the university conducted an investigation. On November 7, the Lehigh community was told that allegations had been made against a faculty member, but the professor was not identified then.
Although the investigation of Mr. Peterson has been completed, Provost Patrick V. Farrell had yet to make a formal decision about what action, if any, to take against the professor when he resigned. However, Mr. Farrell “determined there was sufficient cause to initiate the process that could result in revocation of tenure and termination of employment,” the email said.
Mr. Peterson is a well-known commentator on politics, race, and popular culture who has appeared on MSNBC, Al-Jazeera, CNN, and Fox News, and written for The Guardian, The Daily Beast, and other publications. He is the host of a podcast, “The Remix With Dr. James Peterson,” and the author of The Hip Hop Underground and African American Culture, Prison Industrial Complex for Beginners, and Hip Hop Headphones: A Scholar’s Critical Playlist.
ADVERTISEMENT
He is a spring 2018 fellow at the W.E.B. Du Bois Research Institute at the Hutchins Center at Harvard University, according to the center’s website. An email to the center’s director about Mr. Peterson was not immediately returned on Tuesday. Mr. Peterson could not be reached for comment.
Mr. Peterson is the latest of several professors who have been accused of sexual misconduct in recent months. At Columbia University, the history professor William V. Harris retired in December as part of a settlement of a sexual-harassment lawsuit, and David R. Marchant, a professor of climate change and geology at Boston University, was put on paid leave after a harassment inquiry. Other investigations are still underway.
Nell Gluckman writes about faculty issues and other topics in higher education. You can follow her on Twitter @nellgluckman, or email her at nell.gluckman@chronicle.com.
Nell Gluckman is a senior reporter who writes about research, ethics, funding issues, affirmative action, and other higher-education topics. You can follow her on Twitter @nellgluckman, or email her at nell.gluckman@chronicle.com.