The National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) today announced that it would cease funding and recover previous funds for a research project as punishment for inappropriately drawing blood from students.
The project was cohosted by former National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) women's soccer coach Chou Tai-ying (周台英), who has been accused of forcing student athletes to participate in research projects that required them to provide blood samples from 2019 to last year.
Chou allegedly threatened students with the loss of course credits required for graduation and isolation.
Photo: Wu Pai-hsuan, Taipei Times
The NSTC said it is to recover previously allocated subsidies for NTNU and National Central University at NT$2.46 million and NT$800,000 (US$81,831 and US$26,612) respectively.
It is also to lower NTNU’s management fee ratio by 2 percent, or NT$9 million, per year, it said.
Chou and fellow project leader Chen Chung-ching (陳忠慶) would be suspended for five and four years respectively, it added.
They would not be allowed to apply to the NSTC for subsidies and grants, or execute any research projects under the council, it said.
After Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chen Pei-yu (陳培瑜) exposed the incident in November last year, the council requested that NTNU launch an investigation, it said.
An ad hoc group was set up in December, which initiated a review of potential breach of academic ethics in July, it said.
The council has also established an interdepartmental group with the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health and Welfare to check if there are any other similar cases in the fields of sports and human research, it said.
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