<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1wiSjg_0wPFxqug00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1wiSjg_0wPFxqug00" width="2000" height="1356" ><figcaption>Sexual violence awareness advocate Brenda Tracy, who is a survivor of Mel Tucker's harassment, confronts the Board of Trustees during a meeting at the Hannah Administration building on Oct. 25, 2024. "I’m not going to mince words with you," Tracy told the board. "I’m here today to tell you some of the ways you have harmed me." — Photo by Daniel Schoenherr | The State News</figcaption></figure>Brenda Tracy and her attorney delivered an emotionally-charged condemnation of Michigan State University's handling of her sexual harassment case against former football coach Mel Tucker at Friday’s Board of Trustees meeting."I'm not going to mince words with you," Tracy told the board. "I'm here today to tell you some of the ways you have harmed me."Tracy always knew she would have to "protect" herself from public scrutiny if the story were to leak, she said, but she "shouldn't have had to protect" herself from the MSU board itself.She criticized one trustee’s refusal to participate in an outside investigation into who leaked her name, suggesting that means he isn’t yet exonerated of wrongdoing, and chided another for her engagement with victim-blaming texts sent by a former trustee. She also refuted an allegation that trustees improperly communicated with her and her attorney during the leak investigation in an attempt to influence its findings.Tracy said at a town hall in Okemos earlier this month that she’s been unemployed since the leak and donations have stopped coming into her nonprofit, Set The Expectation."My life has kind of been decimated," Tracy said at the time.The town hall was held shortly after Tracy sued Tucker for defamation. She said that while she reserves the right to add MSU as a defendant to her lawsuit, the university is not her current focus.Tucker is currently suing MSU, claiming he was wrongfully terminated, though university lawyers asked a federal judge this week to dismiss the case, calling it a "kitchen sink complaint."USA Today revealed in September 2023 that Tucker, at the time one of the highest paid football coaches in the country, was being investigated for sexual harassment. He was quickly suspended, and later fired.Tracy said that Tucker made sexual comments and masturbated on a phone call with her while she was working as a consultant for his team — a claim that MSU’s Relationship Violence and Sexual Misconduct office later determined to be true.Tracy said she never wanted to go public with her story, but shared documents and personal testimony with USA Today in case her name was ever leaked.She gave the outlet the go-ahead on publishing the story after it became clear her name was, in fact, leaked. Days before the story went out, a local reporter told her attorney "that they were hearing Brenda's name," Karen Truszkowski said.Truszkowski initially told the board in a private email that she believed the leak came from "someone associated with" the board — a communication that was subsequently leaked to The State News."How ironic," Truszkowski said of the multiple leaks. "Where's the trust here, people?"An independent investigation couldn’t identify the source of the leak, but reported that Trustee Dennis Denno refused to give up his phone to investigators.In her address to the board, Tracy criticized Denno's lack of cooperation in the investigation and suggested he can’t be fully exonerated of wrongdoing because of it. Denno did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.MSU Board Chair Dan Kelly told reporters after the meeting that he did not think a new leak investigation was necessary, in spite of Denno’s non-cooperation. MSU President Kevin Guskiewicz said Tracy’s testimony was "emotional for many in the room."Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism. DonateBoth declined to comment further on Tracy's allegations, citing pending litigation between Tucker and Tracy.Trustee Rema Vassar claimed trustees interfered in the leak investigation by improperly communicating with Truszkowski and Tracy, a claim Tucker repeated in a lawsuit against the university.Tracy and Truszkowski vehemently denied the allegation. "I will raise my right hand and say, unequivocally, I have never spoken or met or emailed or texted with anyone on this board," Truszkowski said, as several trustees nodded their heads in agreement.Tracy criticized Vassar for placing a heart reaction on victim-blaming text messages sent to her by former MSU Trustee Pat O'Keefe.In her address to the board, Tracy read the following portion of the text message, which has been reviewed by the State News: "Her actions are unprofessional and so out of bounds it is hard to figure why she would commit such career suicide. I have been around people who have been hurt and want to hurt someone just to feel good about themselves. She had plenty of outs if she didn’t want to be a victim. First, like hanging up the phone, battery went dead, got something else I need to attend to, but she didn’t. I am suspect on motivation, but I am betting she doesn’t show up or is trying to influence the process."Copies of the texts obtained by The State News show Vassar placed a heart reaction on that message."Dr. Vassar, this message was sent to you, and you supported it by putting a heart on it," Tracy said. Tracy also noted O'Keefe’s positing that she wouldn’t "show up," which was apparently in reference to the sexual harassment hearing MSU held last October regarding the allegations of sexual misconduct by Tucker. Tracy pointed out that she, in fact, did show up to the hearing, while Tucker was absent. Share and discuss “Brenda Tracy skewers MSU board for mishandling leak of her name” on social media.</div></body>

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Brenda Tracy skewers MSU board for mishandling leak of her name

Brenda Tracy and her attorney delivered an emotionally-charged condemnation of Michigan State University's handling of her sexual harassment case against former football coach Mel Tucker at Friday’s Board of Trustees meeting. \"I'm not going to mince words with you,\" Tracy told the board. \"I'm here today to tell you...

Brenda Tracy and her attorney delivered an emotionally-charged condemnation of Michigan State University's handling of her sexual harassment case against former football coach Mel Tucker at Friday’s Board of Trustees meeting. "I'm not going to mince words with you," Tracy told the board. "I'm here today to tell you...