EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) - The Latest from a meeting of Michigan State University’s governing board on how it will handle a $500 million settlement with victims of sports doctor Larry Nassar (all times local):
10:45 a.m.
Michigan State University will sell bonds to pay for a $500 million settlement with hundreds of women and girls who said they were sexually assaulted by former sports doctor Larry Nassar.
Trustees approved the plan Friday after rejecting calls to fire interim President John Engler for unflattering emails that disparaged victims and their lawyers. Engler apologized Thursday for suggesting Rachael Denhollander was getting a kickback from her attorney for her steady criticism of the school.
Michigan State is freezing salaries for top administrative and leadership roles and raising faculty salaries by 1.5 percent instead of the typical 2.5 percent. Engler also is counting on payments from insurance companies.
Tuition will be higher for most students in fall, but Engler says the new revenue won’t help cover the Nassar settlement.
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10:05 a.m.
Michigan State University trustees have approved a three-year, $1.3 million deal to hire a lawyer who represented the school in a $500 million settlement with Larry Nassar’s sexual assault victims.
Robert Young was formally hired Friday as general counsel, weeks after he was brought to campus by interim President John Engler. He’s a former chief justice at the Michigan Supreme Court.
Trustees voted 5-3 to approve the contract. Some Nassar victims urged the board to reject Young, saying he was insensitive during negotiations that led to the settlement.
They also cheered when Trustee Brian Mosallam proposed that the board vote to fire Engler, a former Michigan governor. The motion was defeated.
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8:40 a.m.
Michigan State University trustees have rejected an effort to try to oust interim President John Engler over his remarks about Larry Nassar’s sexual assault victims.
Trustee Brian Mosallam asked other board members to change a meeting agenda Friday and allow a vote to fire Engler. But it was defeated, 6-2.
Trustees are meeting to discuss how to pay for a $500 million settlement with hundreds of women and girls who said they were sexually assaulted by Nassar, who was a campus sports doctor and a doctor at USA Gymnastics in Indianapolis.
In a written statement, Engler apologized Thursday for saying in an email that one of the most outspoken victims, Rachael Denhollander, probably received a “kickback” from her lawyer.
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12:23 a.m.
Michigan State’s board of trustees is set to meet to address a plan to pay a $500 million settlement to Larry Nassar’s sexual abuse victims.
The public meeting also comes amid calls for the school’s interim president to resign over recent comments about some of the women and girls the former sports doctor sexually assaulted.
Although the board appears to lack the votes to oust John Engler from his interim perch, the meeting likely will be heavily attended by people who are fed up with Engler and want him gone. The primary focus of the meeting is the school’s budget, along with the settlement plan.
Engler apologized Thursday for his April email exchange suggesting gymnast Rachael Denhollander probably received a “kickback” from her plaintiff’s attorney.
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