Disciplinary charges, budget among topics at MSU Board of Trustees meeting

LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — In a more than four-hour-long meeting Friday, the Michigan State University Board of Trustees touched on multiple topics, including disciplinary charges against a student protester and job cuts as a result of budget shortfalls.

Dozens of student activists from the pro-Palestinian Hurriya Coalition and faculty showed up to speak in support of a student facing disciplinary charges, with many voicing their concern on the university’s stance on the conflict between Israel and Palestine.

Members of the coalition also spoke in support of their fellow member Eli Folts, who says he was accused of allegedly making MSU President Kevin Guskiewicz feel unsafe during an event on campus. During the meeting, Folts took the stand himself, pleading his case and calling out the president.

Folts says back in August, he and a few other student activists protested at Sparticipation, an annual involvement fair. He says peacefully approached the president, why the university wouldn’t divest from Israel, and voiced his concerns about DEI cuts.

Days later, he says he was charged with harassing and intimidating Guskiewicz and disrupting the event. Folts says he feels as if the charges against him were in retaliation for protesting.

“Almost guaranteed to be retaliation, because in the police report filed by Lieutenant Brandmen. He quotes a previous arrest on campus. The report was only filed after I pled guilty to a trespassing charge to another peaceful protest right here. In which we demanded that the board and the president meet with us in good faith to talk about divestment,” said Folts. “I, what I did was not wrong. I was exercising my First Amendment right to free speech, and they’re trying to punish me for it.”

Folts says the harassment charge has been dropped, but his intimidation and disruption charges remain. He says he is scheduled to appear at a hearing on Nov. 4.

Additionally, the Board of Trustees tackled the topic of federal changes and budget cuts. In recent days, more than 150 positions and $104 million in funding have been cut. From student groups to educational programs, the impact of these changes are being felt around the university.

Part of those massive cuts resulted in layoffs for the SNAP-Ed program, where MSU Extension instructors teach teens, adults, seniors, and people with disabilities how to make healthy food choices on a budget. Many low-income families rely on the resources SNAP-Ed instructors provide.

Tiffany Stevens, a nutrition instructor, spoke at the meeting and told the trustees the cuts are a major loss to the community and her department.

“So, we actually lost 94 employees from our department that all worked from that grant. So, it has affected the nutrition department with MSU Extension, especially because of those federal cuts,” said Stevens. “Now we don’t have those people that will usually go out and teach those classes and engage with the community. There’s only 17 of us left since those cuts have happened and were stretched thin.”

This past summer, the university requested that colleges and administrators reduce their budgets by 9% over the next two years.