(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Dr. Joe Gow, who served as chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse for 17 years, has been fired by the university system’s board of regents after the discovery that he and his wife have been making pornographic videos.
The university system announced the firing Wednesday night.
“We are alarmed and disgusted by [Gow’s] actions, which were wholly and undeniably inconsistent with his role as chancellor,” read a statement from the board of regents.
Under the name “Sexy Happy Couple,” Gow and his wife produced sex videos on the website OnlyFans, as well as a series of vegan cooking videos posted to YouTube titled “Sexy Healthy Cooking,” which feature adult film industry actors and actresses.
In a statement, Universities of Wisconsin President Jay Rothman described Gow’s actions as “abhorrent.”
“In recent days, we learned of specific conduct by Dr. Gow that has subjected the university to significant reputational harm,” he said.
Gow released a statement of his own after the board of regent’s decision.
“My wife and I are very grateful to have the First Amendment right to create and publish books and videos that explore consensual adult sexuality,” he said. “We are disappointed the UW Board of Regents have not given us a public hearing.”
The videos on YouTube appeared to have all been posted over the past two weeks. In an interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Gow said his only regret about the sex videos was how he kept this part of his life “self-censored” for as long as he did.
He told the paper that he didn’t know how the UW System learned of the videos and that he was surprised with the board of regent’s decision.
Gow, a tenured faculty member, will be placed on paid administrative leave as he transitions into his faculty role, Rothman said in his statement.
The university system president added, though, that he filed a complaint with interim Chancellor Betsy Morgan and asked that Gow’s status as a tenured faculty member be reviewed.
UW System Regent President Karen Walsh accused Gow of showing “reckless disregard for the role he was entrusted with at UW-La Crosse.”
According to Rothman’s statement, an outside law firm has been hired to “undertake a fulsome investigation of the matter.”
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