Trustees want Michigan State interim president to resign

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Two Michigan State University board trustees are calling for interim school president John Engler to resign immediately, joining a chorus of sexual assault victims of disgraced former sports doctor Larry Nassar and top legislators who say the campus community cannot heal until Engler steps down.

“Unfortunately, and with great regret, John Engler’s tenure as interim president has continued the bleeding rather than stem it,” Brian Mosallam said in a statement released Friday morning. “His misguided actions and comments have failed to re-establish trust and confidence in Michigan State.”

His disapproval was echoed by trustee Dianne Byrum a few hours later.

“The despicable and disparaging comments made about survivors by interim president John Engler are completely unacceptable,” she said. “I have concluded he is no longer the right person to lead Michigan State University during this difficult period.”

Engler sent emails in April to another university official criticizing lawyers who represent Nassar’s assault victims and suggesting the first woman to go public with her accusations was probably getting a “kickback” from her attorney.

Michigan State has since agreed to a $500 million settlement with hundreds of women and girls who said they were sexually assaulted by Nassar, a former campus sports doctor now serving decades in prison.

“I’m very grateful to see leadership coming from trustee Mosallam,” said Rachael Denhollander, the Nassar victim mentioned in the Engler emails. “Leadership isn’t going along to get along. Leadership is doing the hard and right things, no matter what.”

Engler was unbowed Friday, saying he is looking ahead to a public Board of Trustees meeting scheduled for next Friday, “where we will continue our progress and efforts to move forward.”

“Whatever the tensions were before, we have successfully negotiated a settlement agreement — something that is fair and equitable to both sides, and that both sides agreed to,” he said in a statement. “I believe actions matter, and that is how the success of our work will be determined.”

Denhollander, who has repeatedly criticized Michigan State’s response to the Nassar scandal, earlier Friday called on trustees Byrum, Melanie Foster, chairman Brian Breslin and Mitch Lyons to join their colleague on Wednesday, saying they so far “haven’t had the courage to do the same.”

Pressure from outraged Michigan legislators is also mounting. Joining fellow Republicans in his caucus, Senate Majority Leader Arlan Meekhof “is very disappointed and does agree that Engler should resign,” said his spokeswoman Amber McCann. Republican House Speaker Tom Leonard declined to comment. Engler was once Michigan’s Republican governor.

Engler exchanged emails with Carol Viventi, a Michigan State vice president and special counsel following allegations at a stormy public meeting that Engler was trying to pay off a woman without her lawyer’s input. The Chronicle of Higher Education and Detroit Free Press reported on the emails Wednesday.

“The survivors now are being manipulated by trial lawyers who in the end will each get millions of dollars more than any of individual survivors with the exception of Denhollander who is likely to get kickback from Manley for her role in the trial lawyer manipulation,” Engler said, misspelling attorney John Manly’s name.

Denhollander first identified herself as a Nassar victim to the Indianapolis Star in 2016.