Yan, 72, who retired from UD in September after 35 years, disputed the accusations in a written statement issued Monday to WHYY News.
His statement said he was on Xiamen’s faculty and “decided not to participate’’ in the talent program even though he had been selected.
“To me, the ‘Talented People’ title is primarily honorary. My association with Xiamen University has only involved short-term visiting scholar roles, which were disclosed to the university,” including UD President Dennis Assanis.
Yan added that “my scientific collaborations with Xiamen University were conducted on behalf of the University of Delaware. I served as a ‘bridge’ in these partnerships, encouraged and overseen by university administrators. All my work, including climate change research, has been entirely transparent.”
The professor said the NASA grant in question was for $750,000 and was titled “Building a Competitive and Sustainable Delaware Remote Sensing Big Data Center for Cutting-Edge Coastal and Environmental Change Research and Workforce Development.”
The work “focuses on environmental research in Delaware and is entirely unrelated to any Chinese universities,’’ Yan wrote.
He added that “the project received strong support from Delaware’s congressional delegation,’’ citing U.S. Sens. Tom Carper and Chris Coons and U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, as well as unidentified “Delaware stakeholders” and UD.
Under the settlement, UD did not admit liability, nor did the government concede “that its claims are not well-founded.” Prosecutors also reserved the right to investigate possible tax violations or criminal conduct.
None of the parties provided UD’s application for the grant from NASA.
UD officials would not agree to an interview about the deal and the allegations, except to issue this statement, without elaboration.
“The University of Delaware is proud of its strong record of compliance in overseeing sponsored research and remains committed to promoting and safeguarding the responsible pursuit of scientific research,” the statement provided by spokesman Peter Bothum said.
“The university relies, in part, on the candor and complete disclosures of individuals involved in the grant process. As noted in the release, this settlement is not an admission of wrongdoing by the university, but rather a strategic decision to avoid costly and distracting litigation.”
David Weiss, the U.S. Attorney for Delaware, said the law requires universities and other research institutions “to make disclosures, including certain foreign affiliations, when applying for grants so that the granting agencies can assess whether to fund their research and development. My office will hold accountable applicants who undermine the integrity of the federal grant process by knowingly failing to submit complete and truthful applications.”
Adelle K. Harris of NASA’s Office of Inspector General said the agency is dedicated to identifying and aggressively pursuing individuals who conceal affiliations with foreign entities and undermine the integrity of our academic system to obtain research funding.”
