Why did the Stanford President resign? Incident explored as Dr. Marc Tessier-Lavigne quits after 7 years 

On Wednesday, July 19, Stanford announced that university president Dr. Marc Tessier-Lavigne will resign from his post on August 31. The Stanford President, who has worked in the position for 7 years, was removed in light of allegations that he fabricated the results of multiple scientific articles between 2001 and 2008. He was accused of using his position to manipulate data. While he continues to deny any involvement in fabricating information, he agreed that he must step down due to the scale of the controversy.

As per the Stanford Daily, the investigation into the data manipulation could not directly tie Dr. Marc Tessier-Lavigne to the alleged fabrications. However, the report determined that he is not fit to serve as the University's president, as he could not provide an acceptable explanation for the incident.

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The details of the allegations against former Stanford President Dr Marc Tessier-Lavigne

According to a report by Stanford University, Dr. Marc Tessier-Lavigne overlooked several mistakes that had shown up in scientific papers. He was accused of fabricating or manipulating results using his authority. This allegedly entailed rewarding postdocs who provided scientific results he deemed favorable, while he would reportedly ignore the people who provided results contrary to what he wanted.

The report stated:

“(There were) repeated instances of manipulation of research data and/or subpar scientific practices from different people and in labs run by Dr. Tessier-Lavigne at different institutions.”

According to NPR, the allegations came to light after an investigation was conducted by Mark Filip, a former deputy attorney general who conducted the probe on behalf of the University's Board of Trustees. One member of the board stepped off as he was a major investor in a biotech company co-founded by Dr. Tessier-Lavigne. As a result, this was deemed a conflict of interest.

In one aspect of the investigation, Filip accused the Dr. Tessier-Lavigne of manipulating results in a 2009 study on Azlheimers. The study, which claimed to have identified the primary cause of neurodegeneration in alzheimers victims, reportedly had false conclusions. Filip also claimed that the paper failed to follow standard scientific practice.

Dr. Tessier-Lavigne continues to deny that he intentionally manipulated scientific papers for his own benefit.

The soon-to-be former University president commented:

“I am gratified that the Panel concluded I did not engage in any fraud or falsification of scientific data, the report identified some areas where I should have done better, and I accept the report’s conclusions.”

He continued:

"As I have emphatically stated, I have never submitted a scientific paper without firmly believing that the data were correct and accurately presented," he said. "Today's report supports that statement."

Dr. Tessier-Lavigne admitted that he should have corrected mistakes on the paper more thoroughly. He said that rather than being guilty of fraud, he was responsible for several oversights that impacted the quality of the Stanford papers. As stated by NPR, the university board noted that of the five articles in which the professor is listed as author, three will be retracted. The two other papers will be corrected.

Until his August 31 resignation, Dr. Tessier-Lavigne will continue to serve as a member of the University's faculty and conduct research. As per Statnews, his removal from his position as President could serve as a warning for elite academics who partake in data manipulation. The Stanford Board reported that they will confirm the new university president in August.