Central High dumps Cosby from Hall of Fame

Another institution has revoked an honor previously bestowed on Bill Cosby.

Central High School's alumni association voted this week to remove the entertainer - who has been accused by dozens of women of sexual assault - from its Hall of Fame.

Cosby briefly attended Central in the 1950s, spending only a portion of ninth grade there. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1998.

After months of consideration, the alumni association board voted, 22-6, Thursday night to strip Cosby of the honor, said Jeffrey A. Muldawer, board president.

The board, in a statement, said the removal was prompted by "a desire to eliminate an issue that was distracting from the mission of the Alumni Hall of Fame."

Cosby has been generous to the school. He has donated money, and has often been photographed wearing crimson and gold Central gear.

Those who wanted Cosby removed generally said they felt uncomfortable with the idea of holding him up as a role model for students, Muldawer said.

There was no precedent for the removal. When the association started honoring graduates more than 40 years ago, "it did not anticipate that somebody who was going to be in the Hall of Fame would come up against so much notoriety," Muldawer said.

Cosby's ouster does not reflect an opinion about the accusations made against him, the board said, and has no impact on scholarships given to graduating Central students in honor of his late son, Ennis, or on the Central High room dedicated to Cosby's uncle.

A number of schools, including Drexel and Lehigh Universities, and Franklin and Marshall College, have revoked honorary degrees awarded to Cosby. Dozens of women have alleged that Cosby drugged and sexually assaulted them. Cosby has not been criminally charged in any alleged assault.

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