Breslin 'committed' to restoring trust, confidence in MSU Board of Trustees

EAST LANSING - Michigan State University's Board of Trustees met Friday for the first time publicly since the university's Faculty Senate overwhelmingly voted no-confidence in the group.  

"There’s no denying these are pretty somber times for Michigan State University," Board Chair Brian Breslin said, "and the no-confidence votes that took place this week were humbling, to say the least.”

The Faculty Senate, a representative body of MSU's faculty, voted 61-4 no-confidence in the board during an emergency meeting Tuesday. The vote carries no legal weight but was meant as a message to the board. Earlier this month, 1,907 faculty members voted to have the no-confidence vote; 192 voted not to.

MORE: MSU Faculty Senate votes no confidence in Board of Trustees

Breslin said trustees have met with student and faculty liaisons since those votes, and he is committed to working with them moving forward.

"I do believe what trust you don’t have in us, what confidence you don’t have in us, can be restored," he said.

“I got into this because I thought I could give something back to my university and still believe I can.”

Several trustees, including Melanie Foster, echoed Breslin's optimism and commitment to working with students and faculty. 

Close to a dozen protesters hoisted signs and, at times, interrupted proceedings during the more than two-hour-long meeting. Many were students involved with Reclaim MSU, a group pushing for more transparency and involvement of students and faculty as MSU continues to deal with the fallout from the sexual abuse perpetrated by Larry Nassar.

"We condemn sexual violence and rape culture plaguing our campus," organizer Natalie Rogers read from a statement immediately after the meeting's last scheduled speaker concluded. "We condemn the lack of functional institutions to investigate instances of sexual misconduct, prevent sexual assault, and support the survivors."

During his comments, Interim President John Engler said he was committing to moving MSU forward in becoming a model for how an institution responds to sexual assault.

While the university has received a lot of guidance on responding to sexual assault, Engler said it's in need of ideas for how to prevent sexual assaults from happening.

"We've done a lot already on response," Engler said. "I think the prevention issue is much harder. And everybody has a role in that," he said, noting that complaints of sexual misconduct aren't just limited to students, but to faculty and staff.

After the meeting, Rogers said she was underwhelmed by Engler's reaction to her words. She said he was talking to trustees as she was reading.

"He didn't have the decency to listen," she said.

The meeting was largely business as usual. MSU officials gave updates on the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams and on changes to its colleges of Human Medicine, Osteopathic Medicine and Nursing.

MORE:

People called Lou Anna Simon one of MSU's best presidents. Then came Larry Nassar.

Michigan State vows improved care with reorganization of medical schools, clinics

The board extended head football coach Mark Dantonio's $4.3 million annual contract through Jan. 14, 2024. It also approved new contracts for Carol Viventi, who has been hired as vice president and special counsel to the president, and for Andrea Amalfitano, who is the interim dean of the College of Osteopathic Medicine. Their salaries will be $250,000 and $325,000, respectively. 

Bill Beekman also received a salary increase to $400,000 in recognition of his role as interim athletic director, on top of serving as vice president and secretary to the board of trustees. He also served as acting president earlier this year.

Engler, who took the helm at MSU on Feb. 5, is still working without a contract. 

Contact RJ Wolcott at (517) 377-1026 or rwolcott@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @wolcottr.