Shocker in US college: Professor fired after asking 11 female students to 'remove shirts to inspect breasts'

A professor in Maryland's Montgomery College in the United States has been terminated his their position after allegedly requesting female students to remove their shirts so he could inspect their breasts. At least 11 female students are said to have been told to take off their shirts and only wear their bras by the man, whose name has not been made public, who said it was for a "medical demonstration."

The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) of the US Department of Education intervened in the matter and determined that the professor's actions violated Title IX, a federal law that forbids sex discrimination in higher education. According to the OCR investigation, when students covered their lab coats, the lecturer "demanded that they remove their jackets."

Montgomery College swiftly launched a Title IX inquiry following receipt of the harassment claim, put the professor on leave, and ultimately dismissed him from his position. The OCR did note areas where the college could have improved its efforts to help and inform the impacted students.

The OCR asked the college to take further action after expressing concerns about a possible persistent hostile atmosphere. All of the students in the professor's class must get formal acknowledgements of the incident from the college as part of the resolution.

The college must also give the OCR a summary of the steps it took to address any issues reported in its 2022 Title IX climate survey and discuss the results with the OCR.

According to WUSA9, the OCR will decide whether or not more action is required.

Catherine E. Lhamon, assistant secretary for civil rights, severely denounced the professor's behaviour and stressed the seriousness of the harassment. In a statement, she said, "The shameful underlying facts in this investigation – of a college professor subjecting his entire class to sexual harassment as a condition of instruction – are galling and categorically unacceptable under Title IX."

"I am deeply grateful to Montgomery College for swiftly responding with a thorough investigation and action to address the effects of the hostile environment created by the professor on the students in his class, and I appreciate the additional commitment Montgomery College made to fulfil its remaining obligation under Title IX to ensure that the discriminatory effects end for all its students," she added.

A spokesperson for Montgomery College said in return, "We appreciate the thorough investigation conducted by the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights. The College fully supports the determinations and resolutions outlined in the final report, made public this week."

Although the professor was ultimately fired, certain aspects of the case remain unanswered. The college has not disclosed whether the matter was reported to the police, why the professor's name has not been made public, or which specific class was involved.

Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich stated that he expected the release of any individual's name to be withheld until an investigation had been conducted. If the issue pertains to personnel matters rather than a criminal nature, he explained that it is customary to refrain from discussing personnel-related issues.

• Montgomery College
• Maryland
• United States