SUNY Chancellor James Malatras to resign amid Cuomo probe fallout

Calls for SUNY Chancellor to resign

Officials are now calling for an independent investigation into SUNY Chancellor Jim Malataras, as pressure from lawmakers calling on him to resign mounts.

NEW YORK - The leader of New York's state university system, Chancellor James Malatras, said Thursday he will resign amid harsh criticism for his actions while a top aide to former Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

"The recent events surrounding me over the past week have become a distraction over the important work that needs to be accomplished as SUNY emerges from COVID-19," Malatras said in a letter to the chair of the State University of New York Board of Trustees.

His resignation is effective Jan. 14.

Malatras came under fire after state Attorney General Letitia James made public transcripts and evidence from a probe of sexual harassment allegations that forced Cuomo from office. Cuomo has denied harassing anyone.

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A text exchange from 2019 involving Malatras and other Cuomo allies showed them privately mocking Lindsey Boylan, a former economic development official who would later become the first woman to publicly accuse Cuomo.

At the time, Boylan had yet to go public with her sexual harassment allegations against the governor. But after leaving the administration, she tweeted that working in politics had been "a toxic and demoralizing experience."

Another Cuomo probe report

A legislative investigation has found "overwhelming evidence" that Andrew Cuomo sexually harassed women and that he ordered state workers to help produce his book on pandemic leadership during work hours while he was governor.

"Let’s release some of her cray emails," Malatras texted, using slang for crazy.

Boylan had departed the administration after some of her subordinates complained about her own workplace behavior, saying they felt bullied.

Also, the Times Union of Albany reported this week that when Malatras led the SUNY Rockefeller Institute, he called a female employee "a misery" and "goddamn impossible."

The state university board had said last week they supported Malatras. But state lawmakers and others had called for his resignation.

Revelations from Cuomo probe transcripts

A former top official in the Cuomo administration testified about what was going on at the state Health Department during the early days of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Board of Trustees issued a statement Thursday:

"We want to thank Dr. Jim Malatras for his extraordinary service to the entire SUNY system. The past two years have been among the most trying in SUNY’s history—and Jim’s leadership and collaboration with our faculty and staff have allowed our institution to continue to thrive and serve our nearly 400,000 students at 64 campuses across our state safely and in person. He has been a champion for our students, for access, for equity, and for deeper public investment in this great institution. The entire board expresses our gratitude for his dedication and leadership."

Malatras issued a written apology last week to Boylan and the entire SUNY system last Friday.

The SUNY University Faculty Senate called for an independent investigation into Malatras.

With the Associated Press

New York Education Andrew Cuomo