Student Life

Issue date: 10/9/06 Section: News

Media Credit: Courtesy of Tom Evans Professor Joshua Smith uses a GPS device to record the location of a fossil quarry during field work in Bahariya Oasis, Egypt in December 2005. Smith left the University in August 2006 after student allegations of sexual misconduct.

Earth and Planetary Sciences Assistant Professor Joshua Smith resigned abruptly in August after allegations of two sexually inappropriate relationships came to the attention of the administration. This information was confirmed by a professor close to the situation, who was granted anonymity to ensure job security.

The same professor confirmed additional allegations that Smith continued having inappropriate relations with two female students as recently as this past summer.

Both Smith and Washington University have remained largely silent on the matter, with Smith declining multiple requests for comment and the University issuing a vague acknowledgment of his departure. Smith's wife also declined comment.

During his four years at Washington University, Smith allegedly groped students under his authority on more than one occasion.

When asked for comment, the University issued a statement acknowledging that it "received information this summer that was discussed with Professor Smith. Shortly after that discussion, Smith resigned and is no longer affiliated with the University."

The statement further conveyed that the University follows procedures for receiving and investigating complaints. The statement can be read in its entirety on page 5.

Details concerning resignations are confidential, and the University and the Earth and Planetary Sciences (EPS) department, including Ray Arvidson, the department head, have declined further comment concerning Smith's behavior. Undergraduates were not notified about the resignation and the majority of the EPS faculty are unclear about the full reasons behind Smith's departure.

Smith, 36, is nationally-known for his 2000 discovery of a new dinosaur species, called Paralititan stromeri. Smith uncovered the fossil, the second most massive dinosaur ever found, while working alongside colleagues from the University of Pennsylvania, his alma mater. An A&E documentary, "The Lost Dinosaurs of Egypt," featured Smith and aired in 2002. That same year Smith and his fellow paleontologists wrote a book with an identical title. Washington University subsequently hired Smith that fall. He has become widely-known on campus for his "Dinosaurs: 'Facts' & Fictions" class. Professor Emeritus Harold Levin is teaching Smith's dinosaur class this semester.

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