UNC chancellor to trustees: Revoke Bill Cosby's degree

UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor Carol Folt recommended Wednesday that trustees vote to revoke the honorary degree UNC awarded in 2003 to Bill Cosby, who was recently convicted in a sexual assault case.

"This is the first known time that the University has taken steps to rescind an honorary degree, and we do not take this action lightly," Folt wrote in a statement. "In this case, Cosby's acts were so counter to our campus values that this prestigious honor is no longer appropriate."

She said the trustees are reviewing a recommendation to revoke the degree and will formally vote on the matter at their regular meeting later this month.

"The University has no tolerance for sexual assault, and we have worked diligently in recent years to comprehensively revise our sexual assault and misconduct policy and enhance resources for our community," Folt's statement said.

Cosby was convicted last week in a retrial of a case in which an employee of Temple University said she was drugged and assaulted by Cosby in 2004. Dozens of women have accused him of sexual misconduct or assault.

The conviction prompted several universities to revoke degrees given to Cosby, including Temple, Carnegie Mellon, Johns Hopkins, Notre Dame and Boston College. N.C. A&T State University's board voted Friday to revoke a degree awarded to the comedian in 2008.

This story was originally published May 2, 2018 at 3:11 PM with the headline "UNC chancellor to trustees: Revoke Bill Cosby's degree."