A Commitment to Governance

Many university governing boards find themselves in the spotlight over governance questions, generating opinion and commentary from faculty, students, alumni, the media, and the public at large. Michigan State University (MSU) found itself at the nexus of governance discussions and focus after the conviction of former MSU and USA Gymnastics sports medicine doctor Larry Nassar in 2017 and 2018 for multiple counts of possession of child pornography and sexual assault. Since 2018, MSU has had six presidents, including two interim presidents and one acting president. In the search that led to the appointment of MSU’s 22nd president—Kevin Guskiewicz, formerly chancellor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill—two issues were central elements.