On September 15, the AAAS Council approved a policy that will allow for the revocation of the status of elected AAAS Fellow. Read more about the policy here. The text below is a message that we have sent out to those who added their signature in support of the Leshner Fellows letter.
Dear colleagues,
Many thanks for adding your signature in support of the letter by AAAS Leshner Fellows, calling on AAAS to develop a strong, meaningful policy to ensure that scientists who have harassed others do not receive AAAS awards or fellowships. We are writing to let you know that AAAS has now taken an important first step. On September 15, the AAAS Council voted on and approved a policy for AAAS Fellows, which will provide a mechanism and procedure for AAAS to consider and act to revoke the status of an elected AAAS Fellow "in cases of proven scientific misconduct, serious breaches of professional ethics, or when the Fellow in the view of AAAS no longer merits the status of Fellow." This is a significant action by the AAAS Council, and sends a message that misconduct and harassment have no place in science. Read the policy here.
We applaud AAAS for taking this action. However, there is still much to be done. For AAAS in particular, this new policy addresses a large number of existing honorees, but not all society awards and honors. Further, like all institutional policies, the procedure voted into place may have some limitations as it goes into practice: we especially urge AAAS members to become involved in both implementing and revising the Fellows’ revocation policy, and to continue to contribute to AAAS discussions about how to address and prevent harassment and misconduct more broadly. AAAS actions on this issue can also set an example for other scientific societies and institutions, and we hope you will contribute your voice to discussions in other organizations as well.
As Leshner Fellows, we will continue to push AAAS to take the lead in efforts that promote a more diverse and inclusive scientific community, and to work in our own institutions and communities towards that goal. We urge you to join us in continuing to send a message that harassment has no place in science, and to help change the culture for the better.
Sincerely,
Noelle Selin, Melissa Kenney, Jeffrey Dukes, Anne Jefferson, Laura Schmitt Olabisi, Leshner Fellows