by Nick Fishman

Okay.  I know in the past we’ve used this blog to admonish many an employer who decided not to perform a background check only for it to backfire in their face in a major way.  This time, I cannot completely fault MIT, one of our nation’s most prestigious universities.  However, the most recent resignation of a trusted dean has now become very public and very embarrassing as reported by Fox News and countless others.

It seems that Marilee Jones, dean of Admissions since 1997 claimed to have degrees from three different universities when she initially applied at MIT in 1978.  At least one school, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has indicated that Jones never earned that degree. 

Why the leniency for MIT?  Let’s be fair, it was a different world in 1978.  There weren’t a whole lot of background checks being done.  So, I’m prepared to let this lapse slide. 

But uh oh! there’s more.  Why didn’t the school perform a check when they promoted her to this pubic and prestigious position in 1997?  Whoops!  Do you think they might care to re-think this decision?  Let’s see, a $10 Education Verification or a Major Public Embarrassment.  You decide.

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 26th, 2007 at 6:34 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.