In a statement shared by FIU’s Board of Trustees on Sunday, Rosenberg, 72, said that he “caused discomfort for a valued college” because of issues resulting from the impact of his wife’s medical condition on him.
“I unintentionally created emotional [not physical] entanglement. I have apologized. I apologize to you. I take full responsibility and regret my actions,” Rosenberg said in the statement.
The school hired an independent law firm to head the investigation, according to the Miami Herald.
A woman in her 20s who worked closely with Rosenberg confided in a colleague, telling them that the university president had been harassing her for months, the Herald reported.
The harassment allegedly started in October, according to the Herald. The woman rejected his advances, saying they made her feel uncomfortable. Rosenberg repeatedly apologized, saying it would not happen again. However, a few weeks later he did the same thing, the woman claimed. She again expressed her discomfort.
After it allegedly happened a third time, the woman distanced herself from Rosenberg, telling a college she could not work with him any longer, the Herald reported.
Dean Colson, a member of the FIU Board of Trustees, launched the investigation after Rosenberg told him what occurred, according to the Associated Press. The woman was placed on paid administrative leave.
It took several weeks for the woman to agree to talk with investigators, which she did on Wednesday, the Herald reported.
On Thursday, Rosenberg was given the choice to either resign or be terminated during an emergency meeting of FIU’s Board of Trustees, according to AP.
The statement from Rosenberg on Sunday “provides greater insight into his resignation of Friday,” Colson said in the statement.
“It also provides insight into why the Board did not believe Friday was the appropriate time to celebrate the many accomplishments of FIU the past 13 years,” Colson said in the statement. “We are deeply saddened and disappointed by the events requiring his resignation.”
Colson said in the statement that FIU has “strong personnel and workplace conduct policies” and takes all workplace conduct seriously. He said the university “remains committed to enforcing its policies thoroughly and swiftly.”
Rosenberg originally released a statement announcing his resignation on Friday, citing “recurring personal health issues” and “the deteriorating health of my wife, Rosalie.”
Kenneth Jessell, FIU’s chief financial officer and senior vice president of finance and administration, was nominated as interim president by the trustees, according to AP.
