Embattled actor and arguably Temple’s most famous alum Bill Cosby has stepped down from the university’s board of trustees, according to reports Monday afternoon.
The resignation comes in light of public outrage over twenty women — including a Temple employee—coming forward and accusing the 77-year-old actor of drugging and raping them.
“I have always been proud of my association with Temple University,” Cosby said in a statement released by Temple, “I have always wanted to do what would be in the best interests of the University and its students. As a result, I have tendered my resignation from Temple University Board of Trustees.”
Maintaining his innocence, Cosby has remained mostly quiet on the issue. 
Cosby, a frequent visitor to Temple’s campus and a speaker at nearly every May commencement ceremony, was given an athletic scholarship to Temple. It is unclear whether his philanthropic capacity with the school will continue. According to WCAU, Cosby’s most recent fundraising effort yielded $100 million dollars for the university and keeping tuition costs down.
The university released Cosby’s public statement on his resignation Monday evening, “I have always been proud of my association with Temple University. I have always wanted to do what would be in the best interests of the university and its students. As a result, I have tendered my resignation from the Temple University Board of Trustees.”
Temple offered a short response.
“The Board of Trustees accepts Dr. Cosby’s resignation from the board and thanks him for his service to the university.”
The resignation comes after Temple was put under public pressure to end relations with the long-time comedian. A change.org petition calling for an immediate severance of any relationship between Cosby and the university with a goal of 1,500 signatures had received over one thousand signees by the time of the statement’s release.
He held the position at the university since 1982.
In the weeks since the allegations gained national attention, upcoming work that Cosby was set to do with NBC has been cancelled, and Netflix has postponed his comedy special Bill Cosby 77 indefinitely. TV Land has pulled The Cosby Show reruns from its programming.
No charges have been nor can be pressed against Cosby because the statutes of limitation on every allegation has expired.
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