UC Berkeley professor suspended for three years without pay over sexual harassment allegation

BERKELEY, Calif. (KGO) -- A UC Berkeley professor has been suspended for three years without pay for sexually harassing a graduate student, according to the university.

Cal officials say architecture professor Nezar Al-Sayyad engaged in a "pattern of sexual harassment that created a hostile environment."

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ABC7 News asked UC Berkeley Chancellor Carol Christ about the case. She would not address it specifically, saying doing so would violate confidentiality of the procedures, but she talked about the university's position regarding harassment.

"The campus has no tolerance for sexual harassment and was aspire to be a harassment free environment. I think we're seeing real progress there," Christ said.

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The complaint against Al-Sayyad was filed in 2016 by a UC Berkeley doctoral candidate.

Al-Sayyad has denied any misconduct.

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