Stanford University President Marc Tessier-Lavigne announced Wednesday that he is resigning from his position atop the prestigious California university at the end of August.
The announcement caps a seven-year tenure that has seen Stanford become a flashpoint of national controversy in recent years, in part because Tessier-Lavigne has faced allegations that he supervised falsified research and allowed it to be published on several occasions. The school has also come under fire for its response to several free speech incidents.
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Tessier-Lavigne announced his resignation after a committee impaneled by the school's board of trustees cleared him of wrongdoing in his prior research. The committee's report, however, did say that several studies he was involved with did not adhere to proper standards of "scientific rigor."
"Although the report clearly refutes the allegations of fraud and misconduct that were made against me, for the good of the University, I have made the decision to step down as President effective August 31," Tessier-Lavigne said in a statement.
The outgoing president will be replaced on an interim basis by Richard Saller, a professor of European studies at Stanford, while a search for a replacement takes place. Tessier-Lavigne, meanwhile, will continue working at the university as a professor.
"While I will be stepping down as President, I will remain on the Stanford faculty and look forward to continuing to conduct my scientific research on brain development and neurodegeneration under the auspices of one of the world's preeminent educational institutions," he said.
In addition to the allegations of fraudulent research, Tessier-Lavigne's tenure as president of Stanford was marked by a number of recent free speech controversies.
Last year, the student government attempted to block a lecture by former Vice President Mike Pence by withholding funding from the sponsoring student organization.
In March, the Stanford Law School generated national headlines after a group of students and an administrator disrupted a lecture by U.S. 5th Circuit Court Judge Kyle Duncan. The university and law school leaders apologized to Duncan and placed the administrator on paid administrative leave.
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In his resignation statement, Tessier-Lavigne gave no indication that the free speech controversies contributed to his decision to relinquish his position.
"I have been in this role for nearly seven years, and it has been the greatest honor and most fulfilling experience of my career," he said. "I will always cherish my time as Stanford's President, and I am proud of what we accomplished together during my tenure. ... I look forward to continuing my relationship with all of you and those who become part of the Stanford community in the future."