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Five years ago, Kurt Mitman, a registered sex offender, was granted the title of visiting scholar at Stanford’s economics department. First reported by the Fountain Hopper, the visiting scholar was convicted of felony sexual assault of a 14-year-old boy in 2004. Stanford responded by saying that the university did not know of Mitman’s status. After the news broke, Mitman completed his term appointment.
In the spring of 2019, news of Mitman’s visiting scholarship led to an outcry on campus. Students and faculty alike felt uncomfortable sharing spaces with a convicted sex offender.
It seems that the university may not have learned its lesson in the protection of its students.
The Stanford Review has been told that this quarter, Mitman has been seen around Stanford’s economics department, the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR), and the Graduate School of Business.
This academic year, Mitman’s wife, NYU professor Alessandra Peter, is a visiting fellow at the SIEPR. Recent posts on X show that Peter and Mitman married this past July. Peter was a graduate student in Stanford’s economics department while Mitman was a visiting scholar.
This past summer, the two organized a “workshop” on macroeconomic research that was conducted on campus, in Stanford’s Landau Economics Building, though the economics department has told the Review that he was not in attendance. Mitman also organized a session on macroeconomics and inequality hosted for two days in August 2022 in Stanford’s economics department. The economics department did not respond to the Review's request for comment about whether Mitman was on campus for the 2022 session.
The Review asked Liran Einav, the chair of the economics department, and Gregory Rosston, the interim head of SIEPR, the following questions:
- Is Mitman allowed in the economics and SIEPR buildings?
- Will Mitman be here for the full year in places where he could interact with undergraduates and other students?
- Is Mitman allowed to attend seminars and talks where students may be present?
- Are you aware of the controversy surrounding Mitman’s presence on campus in 2019?
Einav responded on the part of both the economics department and SIEPR, writing that:
Alessandra Peter is a SIEPR Young Scholar Visiting Fellow. Her husband, Kurt Mitman, has no appointment at Stanford. In general, SITE conferences are hosted by Stanford faculty and organized by both a Stanford faculty member and a non-Stanford co-organizer. Mitman was a co-organizer for a three-day conference in summer 2024 but did not attend. Faculty seminars—where faculty present to other faculty—are open to guests and graduate students.
It is unknown whether Mitman has access to campus spaces like the economics department, though he has been seen around campus. He currently is a professor at CEMFI, a graduate school focusing on economics in Madrid.
Currently, Mitman is not registered on California’s Megan’s Law database, which requires sex offenders to list their present address on a searchable database. Though Mitman is registered in Florida’s Megan’s Law database, his last address is listed in Philadelphia, where he completed his graduate degree at the University of Pennsylvania.
As Stanford remains tight-lipped, the potential presence of a convicted sex offender on campus raises unsettling questions about the university’s commitment to student safety.
