Dean accused of misconduct gets new NKU job after resigning

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. (AP) – The dean of Northern Kentucky University’s law school resigned in December in the wake of women’s complaints about his behavior, but will return this fall as the university’s highest-paid professor.

The Kentucky Enquirer obtained complaints by an employee and two work-study students accusing Jeffrey Standen of sexual harassment and subjecting them to demeaning tasks. The university found “sufficient evidence to support a finding of an unhealthy culture of fear, intimidation and bullying,” but determined there wasn’t enough evidence for sexual misconduct.

The 57-year-old told the newspaper some allegations were “defamatory and false,” saying he was merely a tough boss.

Standen is on a leave of absence at his current salary of $260,100. He’s accepted NKU Provost Sue Ott Rowlands’s offer of a full-time job at a 15 percent pay cut.