Harvard University has revoked its term as Harvard Business School professor Frances Casino after years of data fraud allegations, a university spokesperson confirmed.
Gino, widely known for her research into integrity and ethical behavior, was placed on administrative leave in 2023 after multiple allegations that the data had surfaced.
A Harvard spokesman did not provide additional details, noting that he had not discussed personnel issues. Gino also did not respond immediately to requests for comment.
No professor has lost his tenure at Harvard since the 1940s, when the American Association of University Professors officially made the dismissal rules, according to Harvard’s student newspaper Harvard Crimson.
Gino began working at Harvard Business School in 2010 as an associate professor of business management, according to an extensive resume updated in June 2023. From 2018 to 2021, she was head of negotiations, organizations and market units.
Gino’s research has been featured widely in media such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and NBC News.
In 2021, Data Colada, the blog site’s three professors and behavioral researcher, shared evidence that Gino co-authored for over a decade, believing that fraudulent data was proven with the business school.
According to a 2023 blog post in which researchers posted evidence, the rest of the interaction with the university after sharing the 2021 report was confidential.
According to a $25 million lawsuit filed against Harvard University and Data Colada, Gino was placed on unpaid administrative leave in June 2023 after finding it responsible for “research misconduct” in an 18-month internal investigation. She lost her title professorship and was excluded from all teaching and research duties, the lawsuit reads.
The lawsuit alleges that the investigation was conducted in compliance with a new employment policy created solely for her.
A federal judge dismissed Gino’s claim of honor and loss in her case in September, but Harvard University has allowed the allegations that it disciplined her in a way that violated its own holding policy and violated her contract, Crimson reported.
Gino launched a litigation-focused website, and in its final update in March 2024 read:
“If we had the opportunity to prove this in court, we would see why their cases were so weak that they were false allegations, as they were rejected with expert support and were rejected through the Harvard investigation process,” the statement continued.
