Sep 29, 2015 12:09 PM EDT By Russell Westerholm, UniversityHerald Reporter

Fordham, Marquette, and Brown Universities rescinded honorary degrees granted to Bill Cosby amid sexual assault accusations from more than 40 women.

According to Reuters, Brown's action is related to Cosby's 2005 court admission to obtaining Quaaludes in order to give them to women who he had sex with. The actor and comedian is accused of drugging women in a similar fashion, only the alleged victims claim the sex was not consensual.

Cosby, now 78, has denied the accusations, though has mostly avoided public comment on the matter. He also maintains that his testimony in 2005 described a consensual sexual encounter.

"The conduct that Mr. Cosby has acknowledged is wholly inconsistent with the behavior we expect of any individual associated with Brown," University President Christina Paxson said in a statement. "It is particularly troubling as our university community continues to confront the very real challenges of sexual violence on our campus and in society at large."

An Association of American Universities member, Brown was one of 27 schools involved in a campus sexual assault survey that determined one in four female students are subjected to sexual misconduct or assault.

Marquette and Fordham also rescinded honorary degrees given to Cosby in 2013 and 2001, respectively. Vulture obtained open letters distributed to the community on both campuses.

Granted in 1985, Cosby's Doctor of Letters was the first honorary degree the entertainer ever received. Since the allegations of sexual assault came to light, television networks have pulled re-runs of "The Cosby Show," and the actor was let go from the CAA talent agency.

He still holds honorary degrees from more than a dozen schools, but other institutions have cut ties with Cosby in other ways. He resigned as a trustee at Temple, was removed as an advisor at High Point, and lost his endowed professorship at Spelman.

See Now: Covert Team Inside Newsweek Revealed as Key Players in False Human Trafficking Lawsuit