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Stanford
Board of Trustees

Special Committee

This page provides information on the work of the Special Committee established by the Board of Trustees to examine reported concerns regarding research accuracy in certain scientific articles in which President Marc Tessier-Lavigne is a listed author. We will continue to update this page when there are important developments to share.

Contents

July 19, 2023

Conclusion of Special Committee Review

To the Stanford community,

In December 2022, the Special Committee of the Stanford Board of Trustees committed to overseeing a thorough review of issues related to certain scientific papers on which Stanford President Marc Tessier-Lavigne is a listed author.

The review, which was led by former federal judge Mark Filip and his law firm Kirkland & Ellis LLP, included an impartial evaluation of the relevant facts and scientific issues by a panel of esteemed scientists. This effort included dozens of interviews, correspondence with scientific journals, interactions with numerous other organizations, analyses by forensic image specialists, and the consideration of more than 50,000 documents. President Tessier-Lavigne offered his full cooperation and met with the Scientific Panel on multiple occasions.

The final report from Mr. Filip and the Scientific Panel has been shared with the Board of Trustees and President Tessier-Lavigne. The report is available to the public here. We recommend the community read the report for a complete explanation of the review and its conclusions.

The Special Committee is deeply grateful to the members of the Scientific Panel (Dr. Hollis Cline, Dr. Kafui Dzirasa, Dr. Steven Hyman, Dr. Randy Schekman, and Dr. Shirley Tilghman) for their time, expertise and professionalism; to those in the broader scientific community who gave generously of their time in responding to questions from the Scientific Panel; to the many members of the Stanford community who contributed important perspectives and information; and to Mr. Filip and his colleagues at the Kirkland & Ellis law firm for leading this extremely complex process.

Carol Lam
Chair of the Special Committee of the Board of Trustees, Stanford University

April 30, 2023

Update on Review Progress and Timeline

To the Stanford community,

Kirkland & Ellis and the Scientific Panel have made significant progress since the last update in February. This group’s broad-based and thorough evaluation involves interviews, correspondence with scientific journals, interactions with numerous other organizations, and the review of a significant volume of documents with the assistance of image forensics experts. The Special Committee of the Board would like to provide an overview of the Scientific Panel’s progress, and outline some of the next steps.

As a reminder, the Stanford Board of Trustees convened this Special Committee of the Board in December 2022 to review issues relating to academic articles in which Stanford President Marc Tessier-Lavigne is a listed author. The Special Committee of the Board retained attorney Mark Filip, a former federal judge, and his law firm Kirkland & Ellis to lead the review with rigor and impartiality. In January, the Special Committee of the Board announced the appointment of a Scientific Panel of distinguished scientific experts to assist the review.

As noted in that announcement, the Scientific Panel agreed to conduct a thorough and impartial evaluation of the facts and scientific issues that it determines are relevant — work that is proceeding with all due speed. The Special Committee of the Board is deeply grateful to the panelists — Hollis Cline, Ph.D.; Kafui Dzirasa, M.D., Ph.D.; Steven E. Hyman, M.D.; Randy Schekman, Ph.D., and Shirley M. Tilghman, Ph.D. — for their close attention and unflagging focus to this matter, on top of their own extensive commitments.

The Special Committee of the Board placed no limits on the Scientific Panel’s ability to consider any issues it deems to be within its purview. To date, Kirkland & Ellis and the Scientific Panel have reviewed more than 26,000 collected documents, including scientific papers and lab data, correspondence, media articles, PubPeer posts, and various other materials, with the assistance of experts in image forensics where needed. Their review has also required hundreds of hours of meetings and witness interviews.

Because reviews of scientific and academic conduct are typically very lengthy, the Special Committee of the Board did not set an arbitrary deadline for the Scientific Panel to conclude its important work. However, given the resources devoted to this matter and the Scientific Panel’s progress to date, the Special Committee of the Board believes the Scientific Panel’s work will be substantially complete by mid-July of this year. Kirkland & Ellis will then share the results of its review and the Scientific Panel’s evaluation with the Special Committee of the Board and Stanford’s Board of Trustees, which will ultimately be responsible for communicating with the broader Stanford community.

The Special Committee of the Board continues to welcome information and perspectives from any who wish to contribute to this process. The most direct way to reach the Special Committee of the Board is through the email address board-special-committee@stanford.edu.

Thank you for your continuing interest in this important matter.

Carol Lam
Chair of the Special Committee of the Board of Trustees, Stanford University

February 22, 2023

Progress Update from the Special Committee of the Board of Trustees

To the Stanford community:

Last month we updated you on the progress of the Special Committee of the Board’s review of issues relating to academic articles in which Stanford President Marc Tessier-Lavigne is a listed author. As we shared, the Special Committee retained former federal judge Mark Filip and the law firm Kirkland & Ellis to lead the review, and Mr. Filip engaged a panel of leading scientific experts to conduct a thorough and impartial evaluation of the facts and scientific issues that it determines are relevant.

Since then, Kirkland & Ellis and the scientific panel have made significant progress in the review, which requires numerous meetings, the collection and review of a large volume of documents, and the assistance of a forensics expert. The law firm and experts are also in the process of interviewing dozens of individuals who have relevant knowledge or information, including about issues raised last week by The Stanford Daily. In addition, the Special Committee receives many communications, which it reviews and shares with Kirkland & Ellis and the scientific panel.

We have committed to a rigorous review that is as expeditious as possible, in line with established processes and Stanford’s values of excellence and fairness. We review, discuss, and evaluate all information, perspectives, and questions we receive, whether through our email address, formal interviews, or other means and channels.

As a reminder, we welcome input from any parties with relevant information. Mr. Filip will incorporate these insights gathered from the Stanford and broader scientific communities—along with the scientific panel’s evaluation of the relevant facts and questions—into his report to the Special Committee and ultimately the full Board of Trustees. The most direct way to reach the Special Committee is through the email address board-special-committee@stanford.edu.

Thank you.

Carol Lam
Chair of the Special Committee of the Board of Trustees, Stanford University

January 13, 2023

Update from the Special Committee of the Board of Trustees

To the Stanford Community,

As we noted in our previous communication, the Special Committee of the Board of Trustees has retained former federal judge Mark Filip and the law firm Kirkland & Ellis to lead the review of questions relating to academic articles in which Stanford President Marc Tessier-Lavigne is a listed author. 

Mr. Filip, as part of his review, has engaged a panel of leading scientific experts. The panel has agreed to conduct a thorough and impartial evaluation of the facts and scientific issues that it determines are relevant. Mr. Filip will incorporate the panel’s evaluation into his report to the Special Committee and ultimately the full Board of Trustees. 

The members of the scientific panel are (in alphabetical order):

  • Hollis Cline, Ph.D.
    Chair, Department of Neuroscience, Scripps Research Institute; Director, Dorris Neuroscience Center, Scripps Research Institute; Hahn Professor of Neuroscience, Scripps Research Institute; Member, National Academy of Sciences 
  • Kafui Dzirasa, M.D., Ph.D.
    Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and K. Ranga Rama Krishnan Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Biomedical Engineering, Neurobiology, and Neurosurgery, Duke University; Member, National Academy of Medicine 
  • Steven E. Hyman, M.D.
    Distinguished Service Professor and Harald McPike Professor of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, Harvard University; Provost Emeritus, Harvard University; Director of the Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard; Member, National Academy of Medicine 
  • Randy Schekman, Ph.D.
    Howard Hughes Institute Investigator and Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California, Berkeley; 2013 Nobel Laureate in Physiology/Medicine; Member, National Academy of Sciences; Member, National Academy of Medicine 
  • Shirley M. Tilghman, Ph.D.
    Professor of Molecular Biology and Public Affairs Emerita, Princeton University; President Emerita, Princeton University; International Member, National Academy of Sciences; Member, National Academy of Medicine 

The scientific evaluation is currently underway, and the Special Committee thanks the Stanford community for its patience in allowing the scientific panel and Mr. Filip sufficient time to complete their work. When appropriate, we will share further relevant updates with the community through this web page and other channels. 

As a reminder, those who wish to share their perspectives with the Special Committee may do so using the following email address: board-special-committee@stanford.edu. 

Carol Lam
Chair of the Special Committee of the Board of Trustees, Stanford University 

December 7, 2022

Update from the Board Special Committee

To the Stanford community: 

Last week a Special Committee of the Board of Trustees was convened to oversee a review of issues relating to academic articles in which Stanford President Marc Tessier-Lavigne is a listed author. 

As a community engaged in the creation of knowledge, Stanford University has a longstanding tradition of pursuing excellence in research. This tradition is grounded in ethical principles meant to promote intellectual exploration and rigor. Equally important are our institution’s commitments to healthy debate, discovery, and fair process – the same principles that will guide the Special Committee’s work.

We want our process to be as clear to all members of the community as our principles. For that reason, we are sharing updates in a few key areas of importance.

Responsibility for this review lies with the Board of Trustees.

Because the president of Stanford University reports to the Board of Trustees – which operates in service to the University – it is the Board that bears the fiduciary responsibility of overseeing a thorough and fair review of the questions that have arisen. In this circumstance, the Board is undertaking the review so that it will not be conducted by individuals who ultimately report to the president.

As we have previously shared, Trustee Carol Lam will chair the Special Committee. Joining her on the Committee are fellow Trustees Jerry Yang, James Coulter, and Jeffrey Stone. As the review moves forward, the Special Committee may add other members or advisors who can bring additional insights to the Committee’s work.  

The Special Committee is engaging outside experts to lead this review with rigor and impartiality.

The Special Committee has retained Mark Filip – a highly-respected former federal judge and former Deputy Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice – and his law firm, Kirkland & Ellis, to lead the review. To assess and evaluate the relevant scientific facts, Mr. Filip – in consultation with the Committee, as well as Stanford University faculty – will engage a panel of leading scientific experts who are highly regarded in the appropriate fields and independent from Stanford University. This expert panel will review the academic articles at issue.

The Special Committee will continue to engage with the Stanford community.

As volunteers in service of the University, we are committed to actively engaging with all members of the community and welcome ongoing feedback and input on our process. We have established this web page to host this and any future communications, as well as an email address for the Special Committee: board-special-committee@stanford.edu. We encourage members of the community to share their perspectives with the Committee via this email address. We will continue to update the community through our web page and other channels when there are important developments.

The review will be rigorous, thorough, and informed by established processes.

This process – and in particular the review by a panel of scientists – will be informed by established processes for such research-related evaluations. 

This will be a fair and rigorous review based on all the available facts. We will move expeditiously but thoroughly. We understand the community’s concerns and desire for answers, but a rigorous process will necessarily take some time. We appreciate the community’s understanding in this regard.

The results of the review – including the opinions of the expert scientific panel and the insights gathered from the Stanford community – will be received by the Special Committee and the full Board of Trustees for consideration. The Board will be responsible for communicating the Special Committee’s work to the broader Stanford community.

As always, the Stanford Board of Trustees is guided by the University’s values and commitment to excellence and fairness. Thank you for your patience as we conduct the thorough review that this situation merits, and we will provide further updates on our progress as appropriate.

Carol Lam
Chair of the Special Committee of the Board of Trustees, Stanford University

Jerry Yang
Chair of the Board of Trustees, Stanford University 

December 2, 2022

Statement from Jerry Yang, chair of the Stanford University Board of Trustees

The Board of Trustees has noted press reports regarding research accuracy in certain scientific articles in which President Marc Tessier-Lavigne is a listed author. As chair of the Board of Trustees, I am appointing a Special Committee of the Board to examine the facts underlying the allegations, to assess the significance of any findings, and to make recommendations to the full board. The special committee will be chaired by Trustee Carol Lam, who also serves as chair of the board’s Committee on Audit, Compliance, and Risk. I will also serve as a member of this committee, along with trustees Felix Baker, James Coulter, and Jeffrey Stone.

In initiating this review, I want to assure the Stanford community that appropriate attention and resources are being devoted to this matter. The special committee will conduct its work with all deliberate speed. The special committee will engage expert outside advisors to assist with the fact gathering and assessment.

I also want to note that since President Tessier-Lavigne’s appointment in 2016, he has effectively led this university with integrity and honor. I am confident he will continue to do so while we undertake this review.

I ask for the Stanford community’s patience as the board conducts the thorough review that this situation merits.

Jerry Yang
Chair of the Board of Trustees, Stanford University