Cal State chancellor steps down due to handling of sexual harassment allegations

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Chancellor Joseph I. Castro of the California State University (CSU) resigned Thursday in the wake of pushback resulting from a USA Today investigation into his handling of sexual harassment allegations.

Castro said in a statement from the CSU Board of Trustees that the “decision to resign is the most difficult of my professional life.”

“We appreciate Chancellor Castro’s cooperation with the Trustees and his decision to step down for the benefit of California State University system,” Board of Trustees Chair Lillian Kimbell said in the statement.

The USA Today article, published earlier this month, reported that Castro had mishandled sexual misconduct complaints against former Fresno State Vice President of Student Affairs Frank Lamas.

Lamas was accused of sexual harassment while Castro was president of Fresno State, one of the CSU’s campuses. When Lamas left the CSU, Castro wrote him a letter of recommendation for future positions, according to documents cited by USA Today.

Accusations against Lamas included inappropriate touching of women, sexist comments and harassment against workers at the school.

Lamas was barred from campus after a formal complaint was filed in 2019, five years after the first allegations. He retired in 2020 because of a settlement agreement, which paid him $260,000 and determined that he could not work at the CSU in the future.

“While I disagree with many aspects of recent media reports and the ensuing commentary, it has become clear to me that resigning at this time is necessary so that the CSU can maintain its focus squarely on its educational mission and the impactful work yet to be done ,” Castro said in his departing statement.

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