[7] In January 2013, scandal broke out when it was discovered that John Darnell had engaged in a long-running affair with his student-turned-coworker Colleen Manassa.
Within the small Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations (NELC) department, they were the only two faculty members in the even-smaller Egyptology program.
[11][12][13] Darnell also admitted to "participating in the review" of Manassa's hiring and attempting to cover up his multiple policy violations.
[3][16] In December 2006 a student of his created a Facebook group titled, "John C. Darnell...Man, Myth or Legend?"
due to eccentricities such as wearing a monocle, and one time when "Darnell accidentally took a chunk out of a classroom chair with an ancient sword".