Former Students of the Department of Journalism at Ivan Franko National University of Lviv Accuse Professor of Harassment: What Is Known
On February 25, 2025, the NGL.media website released an article titled The Dark Side of the Scenes by journalist Kateryna Rodak, dedicated to sexual harassment in theater universities. The article was prompted by a scandal involving Andrii Bilous, a professor of directing and acting at Karpenko-Karyi National University of Theatre, Film, and Television and the director of the Kyiv National Academic Molodyy Theatre. At the end of January 2025, former student Sofia Sapozhnik accused him of sexual harassment.
NGL.media journalist Kateryna Rodak, while sharing a link to the article on her Facebook page, also revealed her own experience of sexual harassment at university. This time, it involved Ivan Franko National University of Lviv and Professor Yosyp Los.
“When I was 19 years old, Professor Los, who taught foreign press in the journalism department, locked me in his office with him. I had to pass a test. It was just the two of us, and he lectured me for a very long time about how I was special, that I needed a special man—an Aryan, a Ukrainian, with good genetics—and that I needed to get pregnant. That I should only work where he dictated—no online media, only a newspaper. That I should stop communicating with my girlfriends because they had a bad influence on me. And that I shouldn’t wear jeans with bare knees, as they were not my style, and besides, those jeans excited and distracted professors (specifically him),” wrote Kateryna Rodak. She also noted that Yosyp Los took her hand and began stroking it, lifting the sleeve of her sweater.
According to the journalist, at the Department of Journalism at Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, “almost everyone” knew about Yosyp Los’s behavior toward students. However, these actions were never made public:
“It always came down to “how funny”—oh, he kissed someone on the lips, touched someone, said something indecent—well, he’s an old man, just a weirdo, don’t exaggerate. This perception of his actions allowed the professor to continue his behavior because 19-year-old girls don’t always know how to set boundaries.”
Kateryna Rodak’s post received over 325 shares and more than 375 comments. Many graduates from different years of Ivan Franko National University shared similar experiences. Some women wrote that Yosyp Los had told them the exact same things—“word for word.”
One journalist, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Women in Media that she also experienced similar behavior from Yosyp Los while studying at the university. However, her memories fully resurfaced only after rereading Kateryna Rodak’s post, which had a profound impact on her and brought back her own experiences.
Marianna Firtka, a graduate of the International Media Unit of the Department of Journalism at Ivan Franko University, now a radio host and volunteer, also encountered this issue. She recalls:
“He also talked to me about zodiac nonsense, and that senile kiss on the lips, which he “rewarded” me with, is something I will never forget. And yes, it is very disappointing that back then, we never heard that this was unacceptable, that it should be spoken about openly and taken seriously.”
Some graduates of the university noted that the professor’s behavior persisted for years, affecting generations of women.
“Los told me while we were alone in his office that I reminded him of his first love. He also took my hand and tried to kiss me. My classmate told me that he had been harassing women for generations—even hitting on her mother at one time,” wrote Alisa Bondarenko, who studied at the university from 2012 to 2018, in the comments.
Yosyp Los, in comments to LVIV.MEDIA, categorically denied all accusations against him, calling them a “provocation” and referring to those making them as “pigs” and “rats.”
“What harassment? Are you kidding? I don’t demand anything from anyone, I just ask them to study well. This is a lie. Do you know how old I am? Well, that’s ridiculous, I’m not even interested in that kind of thing anymore… I’m already a great-grandfather, not just a grandfather, but a great-grandfather,” LVIV.MEDIA quoted the professor as saying.
Following the public disclosure of the scandal surrounding Yosyp Los’s sexual harassment accusations, the university responded by suspending him from teaching for the duration of an internal investigation. Meanwhile, the police have launched a review into the accusations against the professor. This was reported by UP.Life, citing Svitlana Dobrovolska, the press secretary of the Lviv region police.
The Commissioner for Human Rights in the Lviv region, Taras Podvirnyi, also responded to the scandal. He thanked journalist Kateryna Rodak “for her courage and resilience” and urged all survivors of sexual violence to reach out to hotlines for support:
- National Hotline for the Prevention of Domestic Violence, Human Trafficking, and Gender Discrimination – 0 800 500 335 or 116 123 (free from all mobile networks).
- La Strada Ukraine NGO: Skype @lastrada-ukraine, Facebook @lastradaukraine, Instagram @lastradaukraine Telegram – NHL116123, email: hotline@la-strada.org.ua
- Free assistance for survivors of sexual violence and all types of gender discrimination from the Ukrainian Women Lawyers Association “JurFem”: 068-145-55-90 or 0 800 30 55 90
The Commission on Ethics and Professional Conduct of Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, at its meeting on March 3, decided to recommend the dismissal of 87-year-old Professor Yosyp Los, who has been accused of sexual harassment by dozens of women. Journalist Kateryna Rodak from NGL.media, who was the first to publish testimonies against Yosyp Los, spoke at the commission’s meeting.
For more information on what constitutes sexual harassment and how to respond, visit the website of the Ukrainian Women Lawyers Association “JurFem” or download the memo in PDF format.
If you are a journalist or journalism student who has experienced sexual harassment, please reach out to the Women in Media community for support. Write to us at ngo.womeninmedia@gmail.com. We are ready to support you and provide the necessary assistance. Remember: the abuser is always the only one responsible for sexual harassment!