In an email obtained by the Columbia Daily Tribune, former University of Missouri System President Tim Wolfe has responded to the events that led to his November 9, 2015 resignation and its aftermath.
On former University of Missouri Chancellor R. Bowen Loftin:
...every Dean at MU demanded his removal and he shifted the focus of Concerned Student 1950 to me from him once he discovered his job was in jeopardy in late September.
On political pressure from State Senator Kurt Schaefer:
Kurt Schaefer had several meetings with me pressuring me to take away Josh Hawley's right to run for Attorney General by taking away an employee's right to ask for an unpaid leave of absence when running for public office. When I questioned the fairness of this and I refused to budge on his right to run for office, he then asked me to get in the middle of the tenure decision for Mr. Hawley, which I refused as well.
On the MU football team's strike:
The football team's actions were the equivalent of throwing gasoline on a small fire. Coach Pinkel missed an important opportunity to teach his players a valuable life lesson. The end result could be a financial catastrophe for our university.
On the board of curators:
I had discussed Bowen Loftin's performance and was requesting support from the Board of Curators, which by the university's collected rules, I needed to terminate him. The Board Chair finally admitted to me: "You have been telling me for four months of the poisonous situation on the MU campus and I have been slow to act."
On campus safety:
So as to prevent, [sic] injury and further embarrassment on our campus, the only way to relieve the pressure and stop the momentum was for me to resign. This was the right decision that was vetted with trusted advisors and board members.
On interim UM System President Mike Middleton:
The Board and Michael have to answer the following questions: Why did the Board of Curators decide to hire the leader who had failed miserable [sic] in his capacity as the long time leader on diversity issues on the MU Campus? Why did Michael Middleton choose not to stop the growing protest in spite of his relationship with Jonathan Butler and the minority students on the MU campus?
On his compensation:
The amount the board has put on the table for me is equivalent to what I would have been paid if they had terminated without cause and my annual performance and longevity incentive. In addition, they want me to agree to a "gag order" where I will not disparage the Board or anybody else concerning events leading up to my resignation. The Board's last offer is neither fair nor consistent with Loftin and Pinkel's treatment and is embarrassing in light of which leader did the right thing to help the university and which leader was only looking out for themselves.
The full letter may be found here. We will be updating this page as events unfold.
