MSU faculty, student groups call for Whitmer to remove Vassar, Denno
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EAST LANSING — Michigan State University's Academic Congress is officially calling for the removal of Trustees Rema Vassar and Dennis Denno, increasing the pressure on Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to get involved.
A resolution passed Thursday with a 1,512 to 55 vote cites the Associated Students of MSU and the Faculty Senate's resolutions of "no confidence in the Board of Trustees" because of last fall, when a disagreement between board members erupted, and the consequent Miller & Chevalier report's findings of board misconduct.
The Academic Congress "calls for the resignation of Trustees Vassar and Denno, and endorses the removal of Trustees Vassar and Denno by the governor" in the resolution.
Whitmer has not indicated whether she would step in to remove trustees. Her press secretary, Stacey LaRouche, said in a text to the State Journal earlier this month that Whitmer would "take the time to carefully review this request."
Additionally, the resolution "condemns the retaliatory behaviors of Trustees Denno and Vassar, for exploiting students for political gain, inducing a culture of fear, weakening academic governance, jeopardizing the free, open expression of civil discourse, risking the accreditation of the university, unnecessarily dividing the Spartan community, and carelessly exposing the university to potential litigation."
The Academic Congress praised Trustee Brianna Scott for her "courage for exposing transgressions substantiated by the Miller & Chevalier investigation." Scott's October letter to the trustees and wider MSU community claiming Vassar, then-board chair, was violating board codes of conduct sparked the investigation.
Also mentioned in the resolution were "those who bravely came forward to sit for interviews and provide information to the Miller & Chevalier investigators."
The Academic Congress concluded the resolution by calling for "mandatory, comprehensive Trustee onboarding and annual training, designed by internal and external experts, to prepare them for the rigors of the role and to restore confidence in the Board from the university community."
Contact Sarah Atwood at satwood@lsj.com. Follow her on X @sarahmatwood.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: MSU faculty, student groups call for Whitmer to remove Vassar, Denno
