On July 28, 2014, the University of Arizona denied Dr. Sue Sisley’s administrative appeal for reinstatement (view the letter).
Update (July 31, 2014): The Arizona Board of Regents has announced that the August 7 Executive Committee Meeting will not be open to the public.
Contact: Brad Burge, MAPS
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Dr. Sue Sisley
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On July 28, 2014, the University of Arizona denied Dr. Sue Sisley’s administrative appeal for reinstatement (view the letter).
The rejection of Dr. Sisley’s appeal came as no surprise to Dr. Sisley or to the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS), the non-profit sponsor of Dr. Sisley’s planned study of marijuana for symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in 70 U.S. veterans. MAPS will continue standing by Dr. Sisley in her efforts to find a suitable location for the study at another university, hopefully in Arizona.
Prior to the rejection, University of Arizona lawyers suggested the appeal was highly unlikely to result in a reversal since Dr. Sisley was appealing to the same people who had originally terminated her appointment.
Dr. Sisley’s legal team is now exploring a variety of options, primarily finding a safe and secure home in Arizona for the research. With no more possibility for reinstatement at the University of Arizona, MAPS will move the research to another university where Dr. Sisley can continue to function as the Principal Investigator. Were it not for Dr. Sisley’s efforts to obtain regulatory approval over the past four years, this research would not exist.
On August 7, 2014, at the Arizona Board of Regents Executive Committee meeting, veterans, University of Arizona community members, and others will speak on behalf of Dr. Sisley, encouraging the Board of Regents to help her find a home for the study. Speakers will urge the Board of Regents to show true leadership by permitting either Arizona State University or Northern Arizona University to work with Dr. Sisley, if they choose to do so, in order to allow this vital research to remain in Arizona. Update (July 31, 2014): The Arizona Board of Regents has announced that the August 7 Executive Committee Meeting will not be open to the public.
Additionally, it is important to correct misinformation in the July 28 letter from the University of Arizona to Dr. Sisley. In the letter, the university reports that the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) grant was slated for completion in September 2014. This is false. The fully funded ADHS grant was projected to run at least two years starting January 2014. The primary goal was to provide education about the various uses of medical marijuana to physicians statewide utilizing the educational tools created over the first six months of the grant. The University of Arizona’s abrupt termination of the grant and of Dr. Sisley’s position forced the cancellation of over 100 lectures to physicians across Arizona that had been scheduled through February 2015.
Supplementary material: July 9 letter from the University of Arizona to Dr. Sisley
