Jordi Matas, the Vice Rector at UB, faced allegations dating back to 2016 when a student described receiving sexually suggestive messages from a teacher who was assigned to guide her senior project. After some explicit emails were published, UB announced that the case was archived in 2017 without formal charges from either side. Still, this afternoon the university disclosed that Matas had stepped down from his management responsibilities within the company, confirming that legal action would be pursued as necessary to defend the university’s honor and reputation, free from institutional barriers.
Earlier that morning, hundreds of UB professors joined a letter addressed to Rector Joan Guàrdia calling for Matas to be dismissed on precautionary grounds. The document underscored concerns about the handling of the case and the broader issue of gender discrimination and harassment within the university, urging decisive steps during a period of political transition and alongside ongoing policy reform.
The controversy first surfaced publicly on Monday through press reports describing an incident from 2017 in which the student claimed that the teacher, responsible for supervising her capstone work, sent flirtatious messages and pressed to meet outside class. An investigating commission concluded the case without presenting arguments from either party, a determination made before the surge of MeToo discourse, which has reframed how sexual violence is understood in academic settings. The inherent power imbalance between an instructor and a student—where one party wields evaluative control over the other—raises questions beyond personal consent and highlights how authority can shape outcomes.
Signatories on the letter argued for a firm stance against sexual harassment, condemning the perceived neglect of this case and pointing to ongoing concerns about gender discrimination at the university. They pressed for an independent inquiry into the reported facts and sought the termination of the teacher during the investigation, while calling for a comprehensive review of evaluation practices to ensure that harassment cases are analyzed with independence from the Rectorate and the university hierarchy.
The authors also expressed solidarity with all victims of sexual harassment and gender-based discrimination, emphasizing the university and society share a duty to protect those who come forward and to pursue transparent investigations of complaints.
Heightened scrutiny
The case rekindled pressure within the campus as media coverage and the circulation of alleged messages intensified the debate. Reports indicate the teacher wrote about intimate memories and suggested scenes during court proceedings. When the student voiced discomfort, there were attempts described by sources to have others intervene, and at times the student reportedly managed to exit from a classroom window. Documentation of interactions included accounts of touching the student’s legs, arms, and hands. An investigation team of three looked into the complaint and issued a formal reprimand, not a discharge, in response to the incident.
In the wake of the publicized details, campus protests demanded either the resignation or removal of the vice rector, accusing the rector’s team of shielding the offender. While the investigation and initial filing were conducted by the team of the former rector, the current rector, who did not include Matas in his slate, appointed him vice rector for Institutional Relations, Communication and Language Policy shortly after taking office. Testimony indicated awareness of the complaint, as the Equality Office within the Vice-Chancellor’s office explained to this publication, creating a contradiction with vows of zero tolerance and promises to reopen cases as needed. This tension sits within the broader MeToo-era reckoning across Catalan and Spanish higher education.
The intensifying reaction also prompted a formal statement from the dean of UB’s Faculty of Law, who accepted collective responsibility for how the case was handled and expressed regret that lacking protocols at the time allowed for further harm to victims. The matter drew attention in Parliament, where members from the Comuns group submitted questions to the national government about the university’s processes and safeguards. The overall discussion points to a need for clearer institutional guidelines, independent review mechanisms, and stronger protections for students and staff reporting misconduct.