The Story

Overview​

Aidan worked for the North Carolina Center for Health and Wellness (NCCHW), a state-affiliated health policy research center at UNC Asheville. On March 14, 2024, Aidan reported research misconduct involving North Carolina’s COVID-19 Research Portfolio for the Student Health Ambassador Program. His findings showed that the policy center had:

​

• manipulated program assessment data

• suppressed negative results

• fabricated research designs

• made false statements to grant funders and oversight bodies

 

​Five days later, he was terminated.

​

A whistleblower lawsuit filed in February 2025 alleges research misconduct, fraud, and retaliation.