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posted by martyb on Monday April 24 2017, @10:48AM   Printer-friendly
from the follow-the-money? dept.

http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/04/power-struggle-erupts-utah-cancer-institute-over-director-s-firing

The abrupt dismissal of the head of a Utah cancer center is causing backlash from its faculty—and its major philanthropic funder—in a struggle over the center's autonomy from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. And nearly 2000 researchers have signed a petition calling on the university to reverse its decision.

For 11 years, prominent cell biologist Mary Beckerle has headed the Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI), which is based at the university but receives its funding largely from philanthropic donations, revenue from its cancer hospital, and grants from state and from the National institutes of Health. In an email to some clinical staff on Monday, university President David Pershing and Vivian Lee, senior vice president for health sciences, announced that Beckerle would step down "effective yesterday," but would "remain on faculty as a distinguished professor in biology." Beckerle, who has not responded to Science's request for comment, told The Salt Lake Tribune that she had learned of her dismissal in an email less than an hour earlier.

Details have been scant from the university, which also did not respond to a comment request. But Beckerle's colleagues contend that the move amounts to a hostile takeover by the university aimed at capturing the cancer clinic's revenue, and other prominent scientists are rallying unquestioningly around her.

Also at Deseret News. Change.org petition. University of Utah Health press release.


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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday April 24 2017, @04:59PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday April 24 2017, @04:59PM (#498945)

    A Professor who was a low rung at a bigger nearby college was also teaching at our college. He did a bunch of rebellious things against the administration there, which many of us in his courses respected.

    Came out a year or two later he was stirring up shit with another department over technicalities of who should be teaching one of the classes (which had had no complaints brought against it in 20+ years) because one of the classes taught some curriculum material that was technically under his departments area of study, even though nobody going for that major would cross study in the other department, and no credits were given under the other department's graduation requirements.

    Similiar deal, chinese, feeling under-respected in their position (even though they are seriously lacking in seniority!) and trying to make a big name for themselves no matter who they have to trample over. At least the sleazy white folk you can generally figure out up front if they're a ladder climber. Some of the chinese don't make it obvious until they're jabbing the knife in.