Michigan State board chair suggests bylaw change targets her because of race

EAST LANSING — Michigan State University Board of Trustees Chairperson Rema Vassar implied that racism played a role in a vote by trustees to change how the board chair is selected.

Vassar, the first Black woman to chair the board, was elected under the previous rules to a two-year term as chair in January in a 5-3 vote. Trustee Renee Knake Jefferson received the other three votes. Dianne Byrum, the board’s previous chair, voted for Jefferson.

Friday morning, the board voted 5-2 to change its bylaws to automatically appoint the longest-serving member as chair for a one-year term. The vice chair also will be appointed by seniority and then automatically succeed to the role of chair the following year. The text of the amendment was not publicly available by time of publication, but trustees suggested the line of succession would continue and move to the next most senior trustee.

After the vote, Vassar suggested the proposal was advanced to prevent her from having power and detailed an interaction she had with an unnamed alumna during a visit to Detroit.

“She said, ‘they’re probably already trying to change the rules, aren’t they?’ And I said, ‘How did you know?’ And she said, 'I’ve been Black all my life,’” Vassar said following the vote.

Vassar introduced the bylaw proposals Friday as acting chair of the Academic Affairs Committee in place of Trustee Dennis Denno, who was absent because of illness. Trustee Brianna Scott then made a motion to amend the board's bylaws.

“I feel wholeheartedly that to change our board chair is for the greater good of this board. Every two years that has been an issue. We have relationships that have been fractured on this board because of that very one election,” Scott said. “It’s a broken system. If we continue to do this over and over again and expect a different result, we're fools — and a fool I am not.”

Vassar and board Vice Chairperson Dan Kelly voted against the change.

Previously, the chair was elected to a two-year term by a majority vote of the board in January following even-year statewide elections. The vice chair was selected after the chair.

Under the new system, the most senior trustee automatically becomes chairperson. If two trustees have equal seniority, the chair will be chosen through a random selection.

Currently, the longest-serving member is Byrum, followed by Kelly, Scott, Kelly Tebay, Jefferson, Vassar, Sandy Pierce and Denno.

An amendment also was approved to allow an individual who forfeits their ability to serve as chair for a one-year term to later exercise that option in subsequent years. The amendment passed 6-0, with Vassar abstaining.

The chairperson selection policy won't go into effect until January 2025, and Vassar's current two-year term is unaffected by the change.

Kelly said it’s his belief the board should elect a chair.

“This is a close call. We've talked endlessly about the pros and the cons, and there's definitely pros and cons — but in my mind, I think the board should decide who their chair is," he said.

Scott, who also is Black and supported Vassar in the January vote, said Friday she was tired of personal squabbles having an impact on the business of the board.

“None of these things should be part of what we are dealing with when we have to make decisions,” she said. Scott was elected to the board in 2018 and said her first vote for a chair in 2019 caused personal strife that members shouldn’t expect from their place of work.

Scott said she was told by an unnamed person the day before that she “need(s) to read more books” and is “losing (her) identity as a Black woman.

“I think I'm making this decision for the greater good of this university that I love, and I am tired of seeing the fractionalization on this board,” she said. “And so I'm very happy with the changes that were made — it has nothing to do with who's in leadership now, these changes were coming as a four years ago and anybody that was around at that time can attest to it. This is not anything new.”

Scott said she hopes the decision by the board will allow members to focus on work rather than personal divisions.

“I hope that this board can start to heal. I really do. Because if we can't, we're doing this university a disservice,” she added.

MSU board members have had unusual public disagreements in recent years. Trustee Pat O'Keefe, who was set to serve until 2029, resigned Nov. 30 citing a lack of transparency by the board as the university struggles to move beyond the Larry Nassar scandal. Nancy Schlichting was appointed to the board by former Gov. Rick Snyder in 2018 following the death of Trustee George Perles. She resigned in October 2019 over frustrations with the board, including transparency issues, specifically the board’s reluctance to release the thousands of documents related to the Nassar scandal.

Contact Sheldon Krause at skrause@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @sheldonjkrause.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: MSU board chair Rema Vassar says racism prompted bylaw change