Three victims of Larry Nassar — Kaylee Lorincz, Rachael Denhollander, and Lindsey Lemke — spoke in Lansing, Mich., in November 2017. Testimony by them and others at his sentencing hearing, in January 2018, undermined support for Michigan State’s president, Lou Anna K. Simon.Paul Sancya, AP Images
Michigan State University had drawn criticism for its response to the Larry Nassar scandal for months. But at the beginning of the sentencing hearing for the former university faculty member, convicted of sexually molesting women on the U.S. gymnastics team, nothing seemed to threaten the position of Michigan State’s long-serving president, Lou Anna K. Simon.
But during a week of scathing, heart-rending testimony by Nassar’s scores of victims in January 2018, her once-strong support — on her board, on the campus, and across her state — rapidly eroded. On the same day Nassar was sentenced to 40 to 175 years in prison, Simon resigned.
Her successor, John M. Engler, a former governor of Michigan, struggled as interim president to move the university past the scandal, antagonizing the victims, attacking their advocates, and favoring legalistic pronouncements over statements of healing. In January 2019 he was forced out. Here’s how the scandal came about — and persisted.
Leadership
Lou Anna Simon was accused of lying to the police during the Larry Nassar investigation. Like the case against Graham Spanier at Penn State, prosecutors appear to have come up short.
News
Lou Anna K. Simon resigned as president in January 2018 amid the Larry Nassar scandal but remained on the faculty. She faces charges of lying to the police.
News
Trustees seemed paralyzed by the notion that changing interim leaders was somehow worse than all the damage John Engler was doing.
News
His time as interim president of Michigan State University compounded the scandal left by Larry Nassar, a sports doctor who sexually abused hundreds of women and girls. Three incidents, in particular, hastened his ouster.
News
Following the interim president’s explosive comments about abuse survivors, trustees accelerated his resignation timetable and sought to make amends.
News
His comment that sexual-abuse survivors are “enjoying” the “spotlight” sparked renewed calls for his dismissal. Late Wednesday he said he would resign, effective next week.
Leadership
The former Republican governor’s assertion that abuse survivors are “enjoying” the “spotlight” again raises the specter of his dismissal.
News
John Engler’s comments, the latest in a series of insensitive remarks, are “ill advised and not helpful,” says the chairwoman of the university’s board.
Leadership
Michigan State University’s Lou Anna Simon faces charges tied to the Larry Nassar sex-abuse scandal that could send her to prison. For those on the campus, the prosecution engenders quiet shame and threatens to shake their faith in a beloved institution.
Legal
The attorney general of Michigan said in a scathing report that the former sports doctor’s continuing sexual abuse of hundreds of women was “a failure of people” seeking to safeguard the university’s reputation.
Leadership
Lou Anna K. Simon, who stepped down in January amid the sex-abuse scandal surrounding the sports doctor, now faces two felony counts and two misdemeanor counts.
News
After a disastrous 10 days in which calls mounted for John Engler to resign as interim president, the meeting turned into a spectacle of painful survivor testimony and the pleading of a board at wits’ end.
News
After eight days of pressure to resign, John Engler apologized for disparaging an abuse survivor. The board remains divided, and the women still want him out.
News
Meanwhile, the university’s trustees released a statement saying that a “majority” of the board appreciated John Engler’s apology and that he would stay in his interim post until a permanent president was named.
News
Previously unreleased emails affirm that John Engler’s team at the university, where the former governor is interim president, brought a deeply political focus to the Nassar abuse crisis. With Engler’s job on the line, the politics have only intensified.
Politics and a Presidency
Michigan State’s interim president, under pressure to resign after belittling an abuse victim, won’t go quietly. Here are a few possible scenarios that could lead to his dismissal.
News
“I continue to look ahead,” said John Engler on Friday, as two trustees and several lawmakers called on him to step down.
Sexual Misconduct
A draft statement of apology from John M. Engler, the university’s interim president, said the university was “deeply sorry” for the abuse of a former professor. That line was cut, along with other telling edits.
News
In private, John Engler seethed with the thought that victims of sexual abuse were being manipulated by trial lawyers.
News
Options include using tuition, redirecting money in its budget, borrowing, or relying on insurers.
From the Archives
John Engler’s blundering three months in office have inexplicably positioned the former governor as an adversary of the women who survived Larry Nassar’s sexual abuse.
Backgrounder
The university prospered under Lou Anna K. Simon’s leadership. But for many who witnessed that growth, the Larry Nassar sex-abuse scandal demands hard questions about the consequences of that ambition.
Leadership
The president, John Engler, denies the claim, made in a Friday board meeting. But the episode could bring even more scrutiny upon Engler, who has made several public missteps since his appointment, in January.
Legal
The arrest of Larry Nassar’s supervisor suggests a culture of misconduct may run deeper at the university and more officials may face charges.
Legal
William Strampel, the former dean of Michigan State University’s College of Osteopathic Medicine, is facing four criminal charges.
The Fallout
State and federal investigations, plus lawsuits filed by more than 250 of the former sports doctor’s victims, could mean years of trouble. And that’s not counting new legislation in the works.
News
As the university’s interim president faces widespread criticism for his defiant comments in recent days, many are wondering if the institution’s communications strategy has gone off the rails.
News
The Title IX inquiry will look at systemic issues in the university’s response to incidents involving Larry Nassar, the secretary of education said.
Governance
It’s yet another sign of the tensions that have continued to simmer on the campus since the recent sentencing hearings for Larry Nassar, formerly a sports doctor at the university, who abused at least 265 young women and girls.
Leadership
“I sincerely hope the courageous survivors of Larry Nassar will see this as an unmistakable indication that things are changing quickly at Michigan State,” its interim leader said.
The Review
Leadership on college campuses isn’t just about what happens when all hell breaks loose — it’s about what happens long beforehand.
News
But holding the university or its employees accountable for wrongdoing in any of the several investigations that are underway may prove difficult.
Leadership
John Engler, a former Michigan governor, was appointed to the temporary post in the wake of the Nassar scandal. Some faculty members are skeptical about his lack of academic-leadership experience.
News
John Engler, a former Republican governor of Michigan, will lead the university, and Jim Blanchard, a former Democratic governor, will serve as a senior adviser, as the search continues for a permanent replacement for Lou Anna Simon.
News
Patrick Fitzgerald’s investigation into the Larry Nassar case is seen as an effort to build a legal defense for Michigan State, not to shed light on sexual-assault accusations. One trustee says that Robert Noto, the university’s general counsel, must go.
News
An institution in turmoil asks what comes next. People echo similar themes: openness, a president who will take ownership of what happened, and an effort to do right by the victims.
Nassar Scandal
Public anger over a sex-abuse scandal forced Michigan State’s leader from office — and demonstrated that ignorance may no longer be an adequate defense for leaders of institutions tainted by scandal.
Leadership
As Larry Nassar’s sentencing hearing began, the president’s support on the campus seemed strong. Then things changed.
The Review
Colleges established training, policies, and procedures in the wake of the Penn State sex-abuse scandal. It wasn’t enough.
The Review
Presidents must take ownership of a crisis immediately, not hide behind lawyers, boards, and image consultants.
Commentary
Advice for college presidents: After a scandal erupts on campus, your actions must reflect the values of your institution and its leaders.
News
Michigan State University’s president, Lou Anna K. Simon, submitted her resignation on Wednesday night.
News
Lou Anna K. Simon is widely credited with transforming the university into an academic powerhouse. Her backers also caution against a rush to judgment when it comes to Larry Nassar.
News
Lou Anna K. Simon has faced increased scrutiny as women speak about being abused by Larry Nassar, a former university physician who was convicted on multiple counts of criminal sexual conduct.
Administration
A Detroit News investigation published on Thursday said more than a few people on the campus were aware of sexual-misconduct allegations against Larry Nassar.
News
At an emotional hearing, victims share their stories of abuse by the university’s team physician.
Leadership
Increased outrage over the abusive conduct of Larry Nassar, a former university physician and USA Gymnastics team doctor, isn’t the only reason Lou Anna Simon is taking heat.