Guskiewicz Will Stay at Michigan State

More than a month after accepting the top job at Clemson University, Kevin Guskiewicz said Monday that he’ll stay on as president at Michigan State University.

Guskiewicz, who has led the university for two years, expressed serious governance concerns about the Board of Trustees overseeing Michigan State. In a May 27 message announcing his decision to leave for Clemson, he said that some board members spent too much energy “revisiting past conflicts and internal disagreements.” He also accused a few trustees of pursuing personal agendas.

But Guskiewicz said Monday that he’s had productive conversations over the last several weeks with the board chair and vice chair about the governance challenges.

“The board has demonstrated a commitment to implementing a more robust governance structure, including recent improvements to the Code of Ethics and Conduct,” he wrote in a message to the campus community. “I am grateful for the patience the board extended as I worked through this deeply personal decision, and for the confidence and encouragement I received from members of the board, our leadership team, our distinguished faculty and so many alumni, donors, students, staff and friends of the university.”

The reversal follows weeks of criticism directed at the Board of Trustees, finger-pointing among the board members and a campaign in support of Guskiewicz. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer criticized the board’s “antics” in May, and the university’s men’s basketball coach, Tom Izzo, said he was “disgusted” by the board tensions that led Guskiewicz to leave. Izzo encouraged alumni to “to stand up because what happened with our president is ridiculous.”

Guskiewicz said in his Monday statement that the outpouring of support “played an important role in my reflection and my conviction that this is where [my wife] Amy and I are meant to be.”

He also apologized that his decision to leave for Clemson added to uncertainty among the Michigan State community. 

“I recognize that some members of our community may have questions about my commitment. That is understandable,” he said. “Trust is not restored through words alone. It is earned through consistency, transparency and action.”

Before Guskiewicz accepted the Clemson job, the Michigan State board doubled his compensation to $2 million a year—a move aimed at keeping the president. Now that he’s returning, he won’t be keeping all of that raise, the State Journal reported. He’ll make $1.5 million a year, effective Oct. 1, and his contract was extended to 2031, according to the newspaper.

Clemson wrote on social media that the board was told Monday that Guskiewicz has chosen to remain at Michigan State for personal reasons. The board will meet soon to determine next steps.

Guskiewicz said in his May 27 message that he planned to remain as president for several weeks to help with the transition. The Lansing State Journal reported in mid-June that he would “stay around as long as necessary” until the board determined how it would move forward to replace him. But the board didn’t have a clear timeline for how to do so and never named an interim president.

Sports Illustrated reported over the weekend that Guskiewicz had yet to move to South Carolina, noting that his contract says he can give MSU six months’ notice.

After Guskiewicz said he was leaving for Clemson, Michigan State’s athletic director, J Batt, was hired for the same job at the University of Kentucky. Batt’s buyout was cut in half if Guskiewicz actually left Michigan State. State News reported that the university is not looking to keep Batt, who is currently listed as athletic director on the websites for both Michigan State and the University of Kentucky.