Science and AAAS are working tirelessly to provide credible, evidence-based information on the latest scientific research and policy, with extensive free coverage of the pandemic. She texted to her friend, i am out for blood at this point, then later added, im so ready to get this over with.. But, Ackman says, the second potential donor told him, This is the best idea I have heard in a long time., Ackman declined to name the individual, but said the name will eventually become public. I hope that we can undertake honest, productive, and difficult conversations together, said Lehmann, then 65, in an email to all employees on her first day as the head of Whitehead. Sabatinis achievements and growing renown also made him a magnet for researchers, many of whom were attracted by his high-intensity lab. He told the Globe that he was stunned by the harsh judgments of the report, believing that after 24 years running one of the top labs at Whitehead, he would be given a chance to defend himself against the reports conclusions. Taking on Sabatini was hard for her. Some NYU faculty did not want to be second-guessing the prestigious Whitehead Institute, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and MIT. The subcommittee included not just Lehmann, Hockfield, and Sharp, but three prominent members of the business community and MIT economic professor Paul Joskow. His mail slot was stuffed daily with notices from organizations cutting ties with him. Lehmann countered in an email to Whitehead faculty and staff on 5 April, calling Kazanjians decision favorable for the Institute and me personally. It was quickly obvious to NYU officials that hiring Sabatini was impossible in the face of such controversy and division. I feel like I was totally brainwashed. All rights reserved. Sabatini admitted they had sex once at that retreat, at least several months after their first encounter, but told investigators that Knouse initiated it, and subsequent texts turned over to investigators represented their efforts to arrange for it. The National Institutes of Health, a major government source of grants for Whitehead, had threatened fiscal penalties for institutions that didnt transparently, and vigorously, address issues of sexual harassment and misconduct. Subscribe to News from Science for full access to breaking news and analysis on research and science policy. Tweets. Percentage of administrative and support staff who said they felt comfortable reporting offensive comments to leadership, but only 11 percent of scientific researchers felt the same, suggesting a more tenuous connection to the institution. 2023 American Association for the Advancement of Science. This followed a probe by an outside law firm that concluded he broke the institutes sexual harassment policy by cultivating a hidden sexual relationship with Knouse, a mentee who was then launching her own lab at the Whitehead Institute. Lehmann, now past her second year as the head of Whitehead and a faculty member with her own lab, says she has pushed for new hires and better communication channels with nearby research institutes. He said he had a strong record of supporting women. They published scientific papers at a prolific pace, more than 200 since he launched his lab in 1997. There was a great esprit de corps in the lab, said one member who was there in the years leading up to Sabatinis fall. Source: Whitehead Institute and Jones Diversity, which conducted the DEI survey. That panel voted unanimously to affirm the recommendation of the President to terminate David Sabatini as a Member of the Institute on Aug. 20, 2021 unless her recommendation changes.. Meredith Wadman's beat includes biology research, policy, and sexual harassment . He doesnt care because he doesnt have to worry about the graduate students whose career may be ended by a powerful person.. It depends who you ask, For flying insects, night light hampers upright flight, A new test can pick out Parkinsons disease patients before their symptoms begin, Inflammation could drive lung cancer risk linked to air pollution, Biological syringes could change how drugs are delivered, Rochester roiled by fallout from sexual harassment case, NYU administrators defend David Sabatini, challenge sexual harassment findings. Kristin Knouse with her mentor, MIT cell biologist Angelika Amon, at a celebration after Knouse defended her PhD thesis in the fall of 2016, four years before Amon died of ovarian cancer. Harvey Lodish, one of the founding members of Whitehead, told the Globe he believed Sabatinis punishment was too extreme. He said he has grown more empathetic and he is more appreciative of true friends than ever. She conducted her doctoral . . For Knouse, even though her lab was still small, getting to a place like Whitehead and working with internationally renowned researchers had been the fulfillment of a long-held dream, though she wasnt one of those precocious souls who had known since childhood that science was the center of their world. (Knouse) told investigators that part of her wanted to be in a real, not simply sexual relationship with Sabatini, but that she knew that the ongoing sexual relationship with Sabatini had been the source of her deep mental health struggles, lack of productivity, and unhappiness.. (Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff). Sabatini told some in his lab that the two had a crazy connection. He made plans to visit her overseas. About six weeks later, an official from one of Sabatinis principal funders, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, notified Sabatini they had been informed that the Whitehead probe also included sexual misconduct and harassment allegations. Although the remaining claims, counterclaims, and motions to dismiss that the judge addressed in the 29-page opinion were many and complex, the judge at points made clear that the issues they raised need to be considered by a jury if the cases are not settled first. He said he asked to speak to Lehmann as the investigation began, but Lehmann declined, saying she wanted to let the investigation play out. At the time Sabatini was about 50 years old while Knouse was 29. Using mouse liver to study quiescence and regeneration, using my liver to enjoy trail runs and peated scotch. Still, in the main, it was an unrelentingly negative depiction of Sabatini as a man who acted as if the rules didnt apply to him. (Video by MIT Department of Biology), Kristin Knouse and David Sabatini shown together in a selfie, taken in February 2018, two months before their friendship would include a sexual dimension. The space between Knouse and Sabatini had grown hostile since the investigation began, as she had virtually stopped talking to him and moved her lab office previously next to Sabatinis to a different floor. Thats really really important. Then he added: By the way, its my wife and I who made this decision. Ackmans wife, Neri Oxman, a designer and former MIT professor, serves as a co-trustee of the Pershing Square Foundation. In the meeting with Lehmann that day, Knouse found it hard to contemplate, much less talk about something so painful, so confusing, and so long a secret. The investigation also found that Sabatini fostered a sexualized lab environment, indirectly threatened a fellow faculty member, impeded the probe, and threatened retaliation if lab members raised questions about his conduct. Help News from Science publish trustworthy, high-impact stories about research and the people who shape it. She said that she continued to acquiesce and have sex with him on other occasions, but that her mind was full of mixed feelings. To reach the Spotlight Team staff members who worked on this piece, please write to [emailprotected] or call 617-929-7483 or individually at [emailprotected], [emailprotected] and [emailprotected]. The judge also observed that Sabatini is likely to be found to be a public figure. Knouse had also told them of seemingly contradictory emotions about Sabatini, sometimes apparently wanting more from him, other times complaining about being exploited. This series was reported by Meghan E. Irons, Mark Arsenault, and Spotlight editor Patricia Wen. In situ expansion of engineered human liver tissue in a mouse model of chronic liver disease. But a summer high school science enrichment program lit the spark, and her undergraduate studies at Duke and graduate work at the Harvard/MIT MD-PhD program only confirmed her love of biological research and her uncommon gift for the work. She said she felt she could not say no to him because of his stature in the field, and potential influence on her career, and eventually yielded to having sex. in the jurisdiction of Suffolk County, MA. In the last days of 2020, Pernas traveled to Cambridge. But it first erupted in August 2021 . This story was written by Irons. Yes, the age difference was significant but clearly neither one of the two was very young or belonged to a disadvantaged layer of society. For decades, some researchers have complained that the labs often become imperious environments driven by the personality and priorities of the lab leader the so-called principal investigator or P.I. In this case, neither Sabatini nor Whitehead opted for moderation. Whitehead Institute seeks pause on prominent biologist's - Science Ackman, meanwhile, is among a vocal contingent of Sabatini supporters who have argued that his punishment has been disproportionate. Since I formally cut ties I honestly feel like a kid who got rescued from an old creepers basement. All rights reserved. He said that after hearing comments from members about their interviews with investigators, he had merely asked them whether they thought the probe was really about lab culture. So how am I supposed to get my life back other than to get the truth out there?, Graduate students, faculty, and alumni from New York Universitys Grossman School of Medicine participated in a walkout in April 2022 to protest news that the school was seriously considering hiring David Sabatini. Bar-Sagi said she began by speaking to some former Sabatini trainees, as well as professional colleagues who knew Sabatini and his mentees. Ive done lots of good and this will be fine.. Lehmann, though, told the Globe the purpose of the meeting was to hear Davids side of the story. She added, He could have asked for the opportunity to provide further information.. Meredith Wadman's beat includes biology research, policy, and sexual harassment . But OShea rejected his resignation and fired him instead, saying in a letter that it was for cause and due to violations of Whitehead Institute and HHMI policies, practices and principles.. The Whitehead probe concluded that Sabatini fostered a sexualized lab environment in which he rewarded those who participated in sexual banter, threatened retaliation against lab members if they raised questions about his conduct, and threatened another faculty member who refused to hire a young visiting scientist whom Sabatini would later marry. Deeply damaging to Sabatini was the revelation he had had a past sexual relationship with a brilliant young Whitehead scientist with a similar title but much less research experience and stature, Kristin Knouse, in her early 30s. Lehmann would not comment on whether Whitehead leadership had considered a less confrontational legal option anything short of a full investigation by a law firm. Given Sabatinis scientific skill, she said she believed he could be valuable at NYU, but only if leadership at the school felt comfortable after reviewing the allegations. We strongly advise you to refrain from asking anyone in your lab whether they have met with the investigator, plan to do so or the content of what they communicated, Lehmann wrote. Opinion was not unanimous among the schools top leaders. That was a breach of an MIT policy that had recently been announced with fanfare. He jumps at the chance to talk science when his former lab members reach out. 2181CV02828 Sabatini, Ph.D., David M. vs. Knouse, Ph.D., Kristin A. et He had been invited to a formal dinner thrown by the Pershing Square foundation, a charity that provides grants to young researchers. Knouse was an incoming cancer researcher at the Whitehead, where she would also head her own lab; hers focused on liver regeneration. Kristin Knouse seeks to understand and modulate organ injury and repair by innovating tools for experimentation directly within living organisms. Awards and money were pouring in. When the co-founder of the foundation, billionaire philanthropist Bill Ackman, rose to offer some remarks, something surprising happened: Ackman spoke to the audience about the presumption of innocence, and David Sabatini. The texts are not as revealing about when her change of mind began or exactly what triggered it. MIT Scientist jobless after affair turns into sex harass case It was great to be around that energy.. Get more great content like this delivered right to you! The former dean of Harvard Medical School, Jeffrey Flier, asked on Twitter, shortly after Sabatinis ousting, if Sabatini had received a fair hearing. Its unequivocally not true, said one woman from the lab. Their relationship began before Knouse arrived at Whitehead, when she was an MIT graduate student. Whitehead Career Development Professor; Intramural Faculty, Koch Institute. Dr. Knouse filed a counterclaim against Sabatini for sexual harassment and retaliation months later. The judge wrote that statements that someone is a rapist, or a Harvey Weinsteinlike abuser could be understood by the average person to be either a verifiable fact or a hyperbolic opinion, in which case the issue must be left to the jurys determination.. [And] Mr. Ackman would like to set us back by decades. But Sabatinis critics say the funding is a kick in the teeth to women and others in science who have experienced or are experiencing harassment by senior scientists on whom their careers depend. At the time Sabatini was about 50 years old . He was 50. Sign up to receive Spotlight reports and special projects in your inbox. All along, they had agreed their relationship wasnt exclusive, that they could see others. In our opinion, due process had not applied, Langone told the Globe. Email. She was very worried about Kristin, Weis said. She . Some of the top responses to Google searches about her are about this scandal, not her science. The first signs of trouble became clear when Jones Diversity, the firm hired by Whitehead to direct the survey, began to tally the input of 225 staffers who anonymously completed it representing roughly 40 percent of the workforce. Sabatini soon hired Cambridge lawyer Todd Bennett to advise him. This was all happening at a time when Knouse was losing the support and counsel of one of the strongest female scientists she knew Angelika Amon, an MIT professor who had been her mentor since graduate school. Amon was diagnosed with terminal ovarian cancer in 2018 and died on Oct. 29, 2020. She believed in me before I believed in myself, Knouse told the Globe. He has fielded some job interest from scientific organizations interested in buying low on a distressed asset. The survey, focus groups, and interviews also documented that the laboratory environment was a particular area of concern. Imagine if it were you, Ackman urged the crowd. This Brazilian frog might be the first pollinating amphibian known to science, Scientists use AI to decipher words and sentences from brain scans, Fossil-rich Welsh quarry yields trove of soft-bodied animals at dawn of modern life, Colombian officials halt research, seize animals at NIH-supported facility after alleged monkey mistreatment, Scientists in India protest move to drop Darwinian evolution from textbooks. Aneuploidy impairs hematopoietic stem cell fitness and is selected against in regenerating tissues. In late April, some 200 students and faculty from NYUs Grossman School of Medicine poured into the streets in a high-profile demonstration against the schools interest in Sabatini. This case was filed in Suffolk County Superior Courts, with Hogan, Maureen presiding. Updated. Weeks after Sabatini left MIT, a possible new research position dissolved when Science revealed that New York University was in job discussions with Sabatini and heated student protests ensued. Several other women in the Sabatini lab at the time, however, told the Globe that Sabatini never fostered a sexualized environment. A renowned Massachusetts Institute of . Thats little solace to some in the scientific community. By the next month, November, Lehmann appeared to know much more. Knouse began encouraging researchers she knew who had privately complained about Sabatini to speak to Whitehead authorities; some agreed and some declined. Sabatini told the Globe that his lab had developed a vibrant culture and that he felt no need for apologies. And he can shit talk you to his friends, and if all theyre hearing is his side. She was Dafna Bar-Sagi, executive vice president of NYU Langone Health, an academic medical center in Manhattan, and a cancer researcher who knows Sabatinis father, a former head of the cell biology department at NYU. As far as the outside world could see, she and Sabatini were colleagues and friends, but the truth was that, off and on for more than a year, they had had about a dozen secret sexual liaisons secret because, beyond wanting to avoid eyebrow-raising gossip, they knew that such relationships between scientists in their positions were strictly forbidden at the Whitehead. If I launch an investigation and he DOESNT get fired, my life will be hell, she said to a lab member in a text obtained by the Globe. He knelt at the edge of the pool, gently scooped up the bird in his cupped hands, and set it on the ground. Sabatini and Knouse offer sharply different accounts on this score she saying her sense of exploitation, there from the start, only escalated over time; he saying the shift came only after she learned of his new relationship. Kristin Knouse - MIT Department of Biology Meanwhile, officials at MIT informed Sabatini that they had received the Whitehead report and that he was being put on unpaid administrative leave while administrators reviewed next steps, including whether to revoke his tenure. By early 2021, as the diversity, equity, and inclusion survey and a pair of other complaints came into HR around the same time, Lehmann and other administrators began to suspect one of Whiteheads top labs may have a toxic underside. Kristin Knouse received a BS in biology from Duke University in 2010 and then enrolled in the Harvard and Massachusetts Institute of Technology MD-PhD program, where she earned a PhD through the MIT Department of Biology in 2016 and an MD through the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology in 2018. The move is stirring controversy. Kristin Knouse @kristinknouse. Genome-scale CRISPR screening in a single mouse liver. Sabatini turned over all of his after the end of 2019, that is, after the sexual liaisons were over. In November, she published a paper in Cell Genomics about her labs development of a novel technology that will allow researchers to investigate the function of every gene in a living mammal. Kristin Knouse on Twitter After the viewing, Knouse thought to herself, as she recalled to the Globe, It is wrong for me to stay quiet.. He could say that he ASSURED me that i could push of his advances and that he wasnt my direct supervisor etc etc, and then he just gets a small slap on the wrist. Instead, its been put into the hands of a failed leader, says cognitive neuroscientist Jessica Cantlon, who is now at Carnegie Mellon University but was involved in another sexual harassment furor at the University of Rochester.