EAST LANSING (WWJ) – A Michigan State University spokesman has confirmed the school is in conversation with President Samuel Stanley about his future, but has denied that he has been given a deadline to resign from his post.
The Detroit Free Press reported Sunday that sources said the school's Board of Trustees had given Stanley until Tuesday to resign or face the possibility of being fired.
Spokesman Dan Olsen told WWJ it is "factually inaccurate that the board has given the president until Tuesday to resign, as some media outlets have reported."
Olsen did confirm, however, the board and president are in talks over his contract, but there "is no deadline on those discussions."
The discussions reportedly center over Stanley's handling of a Title IX-related dismissal of business school dean Sanjay Gupta late last month. Gupta resigned over concerns about his leadership of the college and a reported failure to mandatory report under the university's sexual misconduct allegation policies.
A statement from the MSU Faculty Senate says "the Board of Trustees is apparently debating — behind closed doors — forcing out a third president in less than four years. If the trustees' view of the president has shifted so drastically, we should know why."
If Stanley were to be forced out of the school, he would be the third straight MSU president to meet that fate, all due to issues stemming from the handling of sexual misconduct.
It started with Lou Anna Simon, who was forced out in 2018 in the immediate wake of the Larry Nassar scandal. Her successor, John Engler, resigned under pressure because of his handling of the fallout from the Nassar scandal. That includes insensitive comments he made about Nassar's victims.
Stanley was hired in May 2019, shortly after Engler's departure.
WWJ Newsradio 950 has reached out to the president's office for comment.
Board of Trustees Chair Dianne Byrum released the following statement Monday afternoon:
"In recent days, some members of the MSU Board of Trustees, for which I serve as chairperson, have created confusion over the future of our university's president. These actions do not represent how the board of an institution of higher education should act.
MSU President Samuel Stanley has led our university through many challenges in recent years and attempts to remove him from his post before his contract is complete are misguided. I am disappointed in the behavior of some members of the board which threatens to roll back the progress MSU has made and will continue to make.
Unlike many colleges and universities, MSU has a record freshman class. We continue to climb in academic rankings. We've launched the FRIB. The financial measures taken by President Stanley have helped stabilize our finances which were shaken by the COVID-19 pandemic. We have new healthcare partnerships and continue to make progress in healthcare research. We've taken great strides to address relationship violence and sexual misconduct and to improve the culture on campus. At MSU, we are on the move and making progress. That's why I take strong exception to the conduct by several MSU Board of Trustees who have sought to undermine and second guess President Stanley under the mistaken belief they are somehow better qualified to run the university. They clearly are not as evidenced by the outpouring of concern, bewilderment and outrage their recent actions have generated.
It is my belief these board members should apologize, reverse course and refocus on their proper role as Trustees of this amazing institution. President Stanley should be allowed to complete his service to MSU without undo interference by the Board."
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