Cambridge University professor stripped of fellowship following s*xual harassment claims

TW: This article includes mentions of SA.

An emeritus professor at King’s College has been stripped of his fellowship after sexual harassment claims against him were upheld in an investigation.

Herbert Huppert, 82, had previously been a fellow at King’s College for 50 years and received an emeritus fellowship in 2013. 

Huppert’s exclusion came after multiple allegations of misconduct, including sexualised language and inappropriate touching. College authorities were informed of his behaviour by at least two people, although sources claim Huppert had been a cause for concern for years. 

While previous allegations against Huppert led the university to place “access restrictions,” he was still able to frequently attend Cambridge events. Following the “access restriction” policy, another complaint was made against Huppert for harassing a female staff member at a Jesus College formal dinner.

King’s College, University of Cambridge, via Unsplash

Huppert’s exclusion follows recent concerns about Cambridge University’s handling of sexual misconduct after an investigation into classics professor Simon Goldhill. Goldhill, also a member of King’s College, was accused of sexual harassment by a female student.

A further two women came forward with similar allegations of sexual misconduct against Goldhill. During the investigation of the student’s allegation, Goldhill continued in his teaching role for several months. The female student who made harassment claims was allegedly told by the university Goldhill was on “amended duties” and that she wouldn’t be entitled to receive further information about the disciplinary process. 

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Founding member of the 1752 group, an organisation dedicated to ending sexual misconduct in higher education, Anna Bull criticised the university’s approach to sexual misconduct claims.

She said: “Protecting the data of harassers is somehow seen as more important than student and staff safety. Complainants are often not kept informed about what happens and this is incredibly distressing. They can end up feeling that reporting was a waste of time.

“At Cambridge, these issues are compounded by the complex structure of colleges within the university. The Equality and Human Rights Commission states that employers ‘should not assume that disclosure of the harasser’s personal data will amount to a breach of the GDPR.”

Cambridge University, King’s College, Herbert Huppert and Simon Goldhill have been contacted for comment.

If you have been affected by the contents of this article, Cambridge and ARU students can call Cambridge Nightline on 01223 744444 between 7pm and 7am every day.

You can contact the Samaritans at any time by calling 116 123. Alternatively, you can contact Shout, a 24/7 text messaging service, by texting the word “Shout” to 85258. 

Featured image via Youtube and Unsplash