Cuomo will resign in two weeks. How will the transition work?

ALBANY - For the second time in 13 years, New York will have a governor resign in disgrace midterm, creating an unexpected transition to the state's second in command.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday he would leave office in 14 days to allow a smooth transition for his successor Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul, who will make history as the first woman governor.

That's a longer period of time that Eliot Spitzer stayed in office when he announced his resignation on March 12, 2008, and officially left five days later.

Here's how the process will work.

When will Hochul take office?

Fourteen days from Tuesday would mean Hochul takes office on Tuesday, Aug. 24, meaning she would be sworn in on that date and likely give an address to the state.

When David Paterson was sworn in as Spitzer's successor, he gave a rousing speech in the packed Assembly chambers, but COVID-19 restrictions might prevent such an event.

Hochul was set to speak to reporters Wednesday afternoon to discuss the transition and her agenda.

More:Andrew Cuomo is resigning, but the investigations into his conduct will continue

Why is Cuomo waiting 14 days to leave?

It's a good question with no clear answer.

On its face, it would appear Cuomo simply wants time to leave office after taking the helm of the state in 2011. Critical issues remain, and none larger than the new surge in COVID-19 cases.

But critics questioned whether Cuomo might want to make a few last governmental moves before he leaves. There are also a series of investigations that will continue into his conduct.

“It may be overly cynical on my part – but I believe that Andrew Cuomo was a person of mischief," former Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, a Cuomo foe who prosecuted his administration, said Tuesday on his podcast.

"I hope there's nothing nefarious about the 14 days, but it strikes me as too long a period. You don't have to give two weeks notice to resign as governor.”

Who fills Hochul's role as lieutenant governor?

Spitzer's resignation led to a lengthy court fight over whether Paterson could appoint his successor as lieutenant governor, one he ultimately won amid a Senate coup in 2009.

The Court of Appeals, the state's highest court, ruled a governor could, in fact, appoint a lieutenant governor, a surprising decision after it was rejected in the lower courts.

Paterson tapped Richard Ravitch, a New York developer and long-time government appointee, as his second in command.

Now Hochul will eventually pick her own successor. In the meantime, state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Yonkers, will take over some of the lieutenant governor's duties — which are mainly ceremonial.

More:NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo to resign amid scandal; Kathy Hochul to become governor

More:Andrew Cuomo is resigning, but the investigations into his conduct will continue

Joseph Spector is the Government and Politics Editor for the USA TODAY Network's Atlantic Group, overseeing coverage in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Delaware. He can be reached at JSPECTOR@Gannett.com or followed on Twitter: @GannettAlbany

Steve Chucri will resign after election-related recordings surface

Maricopa County Supervisor Steve Chucri announced he will resign after recordings surfaced of him talking about the 2020 election and his county colleagues.

In the leaked recordings, Chucri bashed the other supervisors for their lack of support of the Arizona Senate's audit of the county's general election, and indicated he thought there were fraudulent votes cast in the election.

Chucri, a Republican who has represented the northeastern portion of the county since 2012, apologized in his statement Tuesday.

"The comments I made were during a very turbulent time," he wrote. "My colleagues have every right to be both angry and disappointed with me. I should not have made such statements and offer my colleagues heartfelt apologies."

Chucri said his resignation will be effective Nov. 5.

Board Chairman Jack Sellers said he was surprised by Chucri's resignation. He said he hadn't spoken to him about the recordings, and he didn't believe other supervisors had, either. Sellers said he hadn't even thought that Chucri resigning was an option — he was more confused with Chucri's comments in the recordings than angry about them.

The majority-Republican supervisors have publicly shown a united front against the Senate's audit and confidence in the county's election results. Sellers said it was his goal to have county officials speak as one voice.

"Never at any time did I hear Steve tell me that he couldn’t go along with us, or wasn’t supporting us."

Chucri initially supported an audit and was the lone vote in December against suing the Senate to try to block its subpoenas demanding the ballots and voting machines for the review. His tone changed after Senate Republican leaders announced that they had hired Cyber Ninjas in March, and has since said he does not support the audit.

Recordings reveal Chucri's opinions on supervisors, dead people voting

In the recordings published Monday on the far-right news site Gateway Pundit, Chucri was talking to leaders of We the People AZ Alliance, a local organization that led the charge to try to gain support among state and county leaders for the audit.

Shelby Busch, who founded the conservative organization in December with Steve Robinson and Eric Wnuck, told The Arizona Republic they recorded the conversations with Chucri in January and March.

In one conversation, Chucri told them he was surprised by his colleagues' opposition to the audit.

"You know what I think it was?" Chucri said. "Gates got scared because he barely won, and Jack got scared because he only won by 200 votes, and if there was an audit and a recount, which is pretty bullshit by the way, what would happen in those two races? And that is way too self-serving.”

Chucri was referring to Sellers and Supervisor Bill Gates, who won their races by tight margins in November.

In response on Tuesday night, Gates and Sellers said their opposition to the audit had nothing to do with their own races, and they never told Chucri or anyone else it did.

"If Whitney Walker got more votes than me," Gates said, referencing his opponent, "I shouldn't be serving."

Chucri, in one of the recordings, also told them Supervisor Clint Hickman wanted to have a conversation about doing an audit at the end of last year but "didn't have the guts."

Chucri said his colleagues "want to suck up and kiss up for your vote."

Chucri also told them he regretted not expanding the county's hand-count audit before certifying the vote. He indicated there was a fraud, although he offered no evidence for such claims in the released recording.

"I think it was done through dead people voting," he said. "I think it was multifaceted. I think there is a lot of cleanup here."

The county's hand-count audit in November and an independent audit of voting machines the county ordered in February found that votes were counted accurately and machines were not tampered with. Multiple court cases claiming fraud were dismissed.

We the People made 5 separate recordings, leader says

Beginning shortly after the election, We the People rallied the "Stop the Steal" crowd to try to convince elected officials that there needed to be an audit beyond the county's hand-count sample. The group supports former President Donald Trump and maintains that state and national elections have long been tainted.

Wnuck, the group's treasurer and a longtime political operative and former Republican congressional candidate, has told The Arizona Republic he used the group’s email and phone list, coupled with his political savvy, to urge followers to bombard politicians with demands for an audit.

Wnuck introduced Busch and Robinson to Chucri.

Busch told The Republic on Tuesday that the group decided to secretly record Chucri after he privately told supporters he had questions about the 2020 election and then took public stands against the Senate's audit. They made five separate recordings of Chucri, she said, and clips from two of them have been released so far.

Busch said Chucri got caught talking out of both sides of his mouth.

“The people deserve elected officials who stand up for what they believe in,” Busch said. “His actions did not meet his words.”

Busch said the recordings showed Chucri would say whatever he thought the people wanted to hear with no real commitment.

“If I had one question for Steve Chucri, it would be, ‘Who are you lying to? The board or the people?’”

Busch said she didn’t expect that Chucri would resign over the recordings. She said she was shocked by his announcement.

“It is sad that it has to come to this,” she said.

Robinson, director of operations for the group, said he had mixed feelings over Chucri’s resignation.

“We just want honesty and integrity from our elected officials," he said.

Supervisor Steve Gallardo questioned the timing of the release of the recordings, a few days before the audit report was to be made public. He said the organization sat on information until it could use it to push its theory that the election was rigged against Trump.

Gallardo was critical of We the People, saying Chucri was the only supervisor who went out of his way to work with members of the group, whom he described as conspiracy theorists. He said he thought it was underhanded to record Chucri, then hold on to recordings for months.

“We’re not dealing with rational people,” he said. “They will do whatever they can to move their mission forward, and that is the Big Lie.”

Supervisors react to resignation

Chucri's statement on Tuesday struck a different tone, saying, "There was no cover-up, the election was not stolen. (Joe) Biden won."

Chucri said in his statement "the political landscape changed for the worst this year."

"The environment is wrought with toxicity — and all civility and decorum no longer seem to have a place," he wrote. "The fixation with the 2020 election results and aftermath have gotten out of control."

In his statement, he called the supervisors "good, honorable and ethical men."

Chucri, along with the other supervisors, has faced threats and harassment as they stood up to members of their own political party against the audit — a partisan activity being run by firms without election experience.

Hickman said he, too, was stunned by the resignation, "which will probably create 1,000 questions in this environment."

Gates said that he hadn't talked to Chucri since the recordings were released. He said while he was surprised to hear Chucri's comments, he was prepared to move forward working with him.

"We are professionals," Gates said. "He is a professional ... We have many years of working together successfully."

Gates said he is disappointed that the political environment has become so toxic "it would cause good people to want to leave and not serve out their term."

Gallardo, the lone Democrat on the five-member board, said he was disappointed by the things Chucri said on the recordings.

“The Steve Chucri I knew and worked with for six years was not the Steve Chucri I heard on those tapes,” he said.

County Recorder Stephen Richer said Chucri is a good man.

"I wish him well in whatever he decides."

Former County Recorder Adrian Fontes said that Chucri was more than happy “to throw his colleagues under the bus and stab me in the back.”

In the recordings, Chucri calls Fontes a "scumbag."

Fontes, who lost his reelection in 2020 and is now running for Arizona secretary of state, said the recordings only confirmed what he already knew about Chucri.

“He’s two-faced,” Fontes said. “Good riddance, as far as I am concerned.”

Fontes said Chucri fought him at every step over voting issues while he was in office.

“That guy stood in the way of every single thing we did,” he said, adding there was only one reason and it wasn’t about concerns over reform. It was politics: “Because I’m a Democrat."

Chucri is the president and CEO of the Arizona Restaurant Association and serves on the boards of many organizations, including the Greater Phoenix Economic Council.

Once Chucri resigns, the supervisors will appoint another Republican to serve in his seat until a special election can take place, county spokesperson Fields Moseley said.

Voters in District 2 will elect a new representative to the seat in the August 2022 primary election.

Republic reporter Richard Ruelas contributed to this article.

Reach the reporter at jen.fifield@azcentral.com or at 602-444-8763. Follow her on Twitter @JenAFifield.

Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral.com today.

Ball State president Ferguson resigns

Seth Slabaugh

The Star Press

MUNCIE — Ball State University's board of trustees accepted the mysterious, sudden and unexpected resignation of President Paul Ferguson during a special meeting at the university's Indianapolis Center on Monday.

The board last week sent The Star Press a written notice of the special meeting that contained no agenda, as well as a written notice of an executive session immediately before the special meeting whose agenda included personnel matters. The special meeting was open, but no one from the press or the public attended. However, no explanation for the resignation was given during the open meeting, The Star Press has learned, nor was one given after the meeting.

"There is something going on for his resignation to be so sudden, and the trustees ought to tell us what it is," said BSU professor Eric Kelly, a former chair of University Senate. "This is weird. I'm stunned that it's happening mid-semester. I would not have been surprised if they had announced he would be leaving effective July 1. Coming in after a strong president like Jo Ann Gora … is very tough. I kind of expected he would wind up with a two-year job for a whole bunch of reasons. But the fact he's leaving so suddenly is stunning."

Was Ferguson terminated without cause?

Formerly president of the University of Maine, Ferguson had been hired as Ball State's 15th president effective Aug. 1, 2014. He signed a five-year contract with Ball State.

The board's unwillingness to say why Ferguson quit is fueling speculation in the public and on campus, such as: Is the university facing a financial crisis? Is Ferguson facing a health crisis? Is it related to a crisis in management of on-campus enrollment, which continues to decline?

And the board has hired Ball State graduate Myra Borshoff, a retired Indianapolis public relations consultant and an expert in crisis communications, to advise it on Ferguson's departure. But she said in an interview on Monday, "I have a lot of expertise in crisis communications, but this would not fall into that category. Oftentimes when organizations have situations like this, they have me work with them to maintain a level of confidentiality within the institution, so it doesn't put anyone inside the organization in an awkward position."

Associate professor Amy Harden, current president of University Senate, told The Star Press: "I am surprised by the seemingly abrupt nature and am immensely saddened by this news. In the short time he has been at Ball State, he has had a tremendous positive impact through the various initiatives and the refreshed refocus on Ball State as the university for entrepreneurial learning and community engagement."

Like almost everyone else, she has no idea why Ferguson left.

Was Ferguson terminated without cause?

Political science professor Joe Losco said, "The faculty will be sorry to see him leave. As a scholar and former faculty member himself, he understood faculty concerns and seemed genuinely committed to helping faculty achieve goals they had set for themselves in research, teaching, and service. His demeanor is always cheerful and upbeat.".

Ferguson, a toxicologist, was the first scientist to lead Ball State. His initiatives included a plan to address declining on-campus enrollment.

No matter how many ways the question was asked, Indianapolis attorney Rick Hall, chairman of the trustees, declined during an interview on Monday to say why Ferguson was leaving.

The president simply asked the board for a two-month sabbatical leave and submitted his resignation to be effective at the end of that leave, Hall said. "That is something that he and the board agreed was a good route forward. The board has great confidence in the ability of the faculty and the administration and all that they have accomplished in the last decade" and the university is in a "good position to build on our past success," Hall said. "The future is very bright."

Students react to Ferguson resignation

Ferguson was paid a base salary of $450,000. His five-year employment contract, executed in June of 2014, states that "it is understood that both parties desire and anticipate a long-term relationship" but included all kinds of escape clauses. For example, it gives the board authority to fire Ferguson without cause, in which event both parties "will work cooperatively to prepare a public announcement" regarding the termination.

"The board will have ultimate decision-making authority over the content and timing of the public announcement," the agreement states. "Both parties agree not to make any public statement that would disparage or defame the other."

That agreement also calls for Ferguson to receive damages equal to one year of his salary if he were to be fired without cause.

"It has been an honor and privilege for Grace and me to work with and to serve the faculty, staff, and especially our students, at Ball State University," Ferguson said in a prepared statement that was distributed Monday. "We have, together, worked diligently to refresh our vision and legacy of beneficence and entrepreneurship, refocused on being student-centered and community-engaged, and improved many of our policies and procedures to be best practices."

"While the board and Dr. Ferguson are disappointed that this relationship has ended, we wish Dr. Ferguson and his wife, Grace, well in their future endeavors,” Hall said in a prepared statement.

Last July, the trustees adopted a $345-million general fund budget for 2015-16 that included no pay raises for Ferguson or his cabinet at the president’s request.

The trustees have appointed Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Terry King as acting President. King served as Interim President in 2014 when former Gora retired after 10 years.

“The board has tremendous confidence in the ability of the faculty and the administration to build upon their past successes,” Hall said in the news release, noting that “the collective effort of the entire university community will be especially important as we approach the Centennial Celebration of Ball State in 2018.”

Contact Seth Slabaugh at (765) 213-5834.

FERGUSON TIMELINE OF EVENTS:

Here's a timeline of Ball State President Paul W. Ferguson's tenure at the university. His resignation was announced Monday afternoon by Ball State:

May 22, 2014: Paul W. Ferguson, 61, president of the University of Maine since 2011, was named the 15th president of Ball State. Ferguson was unanimously approved by the Ball State Board of Trustees. Ball State Board of Trustee chair Rick Hall confirmed to The Star Press that Ferguson will be paid a base salary of $450,000. At Maine, Ferguson earned a base salary of $270,000 during the fiscal year 2013. Ferguson said he is committed to preserving the "excellent" legacy at Ball State.

May 23, 2014: Ferguson says that working with athletics will be a key element of his tenure. He'd been close with coaches and administrators at stops at UNLV, SIU-Edwardsville and Maine, and called college sports both a large financial commitment and a community-impacting enterprise. "Athletics is the front porch to the university, so we want to do it well if we're going to do it," he said.

July 5, 2014: The Star Press reports the contract between Ferguson and Ball State appoints Ferguson for an initial term of five years, beginning Aug. 1, at a base salary of $450,000. "It is understood that both parties desire and anticipate a long-term relationship," the agreement states. "Therefore, the board (of trustees) ... may offer to extend this agreement for additional years."

Sept. 17, 2014: Ferguson adds a new position to his cabinet — senior adviser to the president and chief of staff. The appointment of Julie Hopwood, who has been Ferguson's right-hand person for a dozen years at other schools, increases the number of women on the nine-member cabinet to three. Hopwood holds four college degrees, including two master's degrees and a law degree. Her $200,000 salary is lower than all but one other cabinet member and will require no new funding, the president said. Ferguson, who became president in August, compared the new cabinet member to "almost an ambassador" "who will make sure the office of the president is connected to all constituencies."

Sept. 13, 2015: On-campus enrollment at Ball State University has dropped for the fourth consecutive year, but overall enrollment is up as the number of online students grows. The school has 16,602 on-campus students this fall, down from 18,241 in the fall of 2011. That means 1,639 fewer students are taking classes on the main campus this fall than four years ago, a decrease of 9 percent. The university issued a news release headlined, "Ball State sees a 2.6 percent increase in total student enrollment for fall 2015."

Oct. 22, 2014: The university's board of trustees endorses the plan to consolidate health sciences academic programs, clinics and labs into a new college. Provost Terry King said the consolidation of health-related assets would improve collaboration, scholarship, quality and public access to clinics and labs, especially for the underserved population. Ferguson also endorsed the new college, emphasizing the opportunity for it to improve community-based service. Ball State operates more than a dozen clinics and labs, including audiology, autism, speech language, counseling, human performance, biomechanics, nutrition assessment, gastrointestinal, micro imaging, neuropsychology, renal and metabolic and psychoeducational diagnostic intervention.

Oct. 25, 2014: Ball State University seeks $52.5 million from the state to construct a 150,000-square-foot health professions building for nearly 2,500 students majoring in health programs, including nursing. Paul Ferguson told the Indiana Commission for Higher Education that enrollment in the nursing program has nearly doubled in the past decade. The new building, to contain classrooms and teaching/research laboratories, will be the university's top capital request to the legislature when it reconvenes on Jan. 6 for a session to adopt a two-year budget for 2015-16 and 2016-17. Ball State's other capital priorities are $27.5 million for expansion/renovation of the College of Architecture and Planning; $11.6 million for underground utility improvements; $15.9 million for other repairs and rehabilitation; and $6.2 million for a new instructional venue for the department of theater and dance.

Jan. 5, 2015: Paul Ferguson will replace the top two officials in charge of maintaining and enhancing the institution's image, brand and visibility. Ferguson announced in an email that he had accepted the resignations of Tom Taylor, vice president for enrollment, marketing and communications, and Tony Proudfoot, associate vice president for marketing and communications. Taylor, whose salary was $236,810, was a member of the president's cabinet. Proudfoot, whose salary was $156,563, already has landed a similar position at the University of Arizona, which called him "a veteran brand builder." Ball State is searching for a new vice president/treasurer to replace Randy Howard, who left for to become CFO at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, and for a new athletic director to replace Bill Scholl, who quit to take the AD job at Marquette University.

Jan. 9, 2015: Ferguson announces Mark Sandy is the school's new athletic director, bringing to a conclusion a four-month search to fill that vacancy after Bill Scholl accepted an AD position at Marquette.

Jan. 16, 2015: The Indiana Secretary of State's office is investigating Ball State University's loss of $13.1 million in investments to fraud. The secretary of state's securities division disclosed on Thursday that it is conducting a criminal investigation.

Feb. 7, 2015: Ferguson presents a new, less "generic" vision statement; a "refreshed" strategic plan that "will embrace risk" and "expect failure;" $50,000 out of his own pocket to start a scholarship fund to reward students driven by entrepreneurial beneficence; and plans to increase revenue through enrollment growth. Ferguson, who has retained an enrollment management consultant, will push for a 20-percent increase in graduate student enrollment and a 35-percent increase in fully online student enrollment. Ferguson also will back plans to increase research funding.

May 2, 2015: The state Legislature approves Ball State University's request for $62.5 million for construction to house a new college of health sciences and professions. In addition, the Legislature approved a 3.4 percent increase in state appropriations for the university's operations budget over the 2015-17 biennium, BSU trustees were told.

July 16, 2015: Ball State University is the state's biggest gainer in a new report of on-time college completion rates. Only a third of students who entered Ball State in 2005 graduated within four years, while nearly 45 percent of those who enrolled there in 2010 graduated within four years, according to an Indiana Commission for Higher Education (ICHE) report. BSU's 12 percentage-point increase over five years was the highest among Indiana's four-year public schools, followed by Purdue University-West Lafayette (11.5), Indiana University-Bloomington (10.1) and IUPUI (8.4). While Ball State showed the most improvement, its 44.7 percent on-time completion rate remains in third place behind IU-Bloomington at 59.8 percent and Purdue-West Lafayette at 49.1 percent.

July 18, 2015: Ball State University's board of trustees adopts a $345 million general fund budget for 2015-16 that includes no pay raises for President Paul Ferguson or his cabinet. Ferguson and the cabinet opted to go without pay raises this year even though Indianapolis attorney Rick Hall, board chairman, said trustees were pleased with the administration's dedication and "servant leadership" and had planned to give them raises. "We determined that the faculty and staff should get those additional dollars for merit," Ferguson said. "A significant hallmark of servant leadership is giving back. We believe in this university and want to provide an additional financial reward to our outstanding faculty and staff." The budget includes a 2-percent increase in funding for salaries plus additional funds for merit raises, promotions and travel.

Aug. 22, 2015: Ferguson appoints distinguished professor Michael Goldsby as the school's first CEO (chief entrepreneurship officer). As Ferguson starts his second year at Ball State, the phrase "immersive learning" created during predecessor Jo Ann Gora's tenure is taking a back seat to the term "entrepreneurial university." "We've owned it," Ferguson said in the president's annual address to faculty and staff kicking off the fall semester. "It's ours ... Ball State is the entrepreneurial university ... Ball State in the eyes externally is looked upon as the entrepreneurial university." Also, Ferguson welcomed Jennifer Blackmer, the school's first associate provost for entrepreneurial learning.

Sept. 13, 2015: On-campus enrollment at Ball State University drops for the fourth consecutive year, but overall enrollment is up as the number of online students grows. The school has 16,602 on-campus students this fall, down from 18,241 in the fall of 2011. That means 1,639 fewer students are taking classes on the main campus this fall than four years ago, a decrease of 9 percent. Ball State reports the total enrollment had increased from 20,655 last fall to 21,196 this fall, but didn't explain that total enrollment includes thousands of exclusively online students. Total enrollment this fall is down compared to four years ago when it was 22,147. Julie Hopwood, who took over as BSU's interim vice president for enrollment services eight months ago, told The Star Press, "The decline in on-campus enrollment and the increase in admissions standards over the past five years was part of an overall enrollment strategy." She added that the school is creating a long-term enrollment management strategic plan based on contemporary best practices.

Sept. 16, 2015: Last year, Ball State University climbed from 181st to 173rd in U.S. News & World Report's Best Colleges rankings. This year, it rose to 168th. Meanwhile, the median salary of former Ball State students 10 years after entering the school is $39,000, just about the national average, according to the White House's new College Scorecard. Ball State finished the magazine's Best Colleges rankings in a tie for 168th with Texas Tech, University of Central Florida, University of Idaho, University of Louisville and University of Maine, where Paul Ferguson served as president before coming to BSU.

Sept. 24, 2015: Ball State University is planning a $5 million expansion and renovation of Emens Auditorium, a venue that has united town and gown for more than half a century. The project will add about 12,000 square feet to the front of the building, expanding the lobby for more pre-event, intermission and post-event crowds, relocating the box office to an interior area, adding much-needed restrooms to the main floor, and also adding hospitality space, a conference room and office space.

Sept. 25, 2015: Ferguson calls the newly renovated Botsford/Swinford residence hall a national model of sustainability and 24/7 living-learning.The $35.7 million project includes energy-efficient revolving doors that prevent drafts, sunlit lounges, water-bottle filling stations that reduce plastic in the waste stream, geothermal heating/cooling and a toxin-free carpet/tile/sink/window/etc. cleaning product called "ozone ewater" that eliminates germs, odors and stains without the chemicals. Academically, the residence hall, which is filled to capacity (577 students), is Ball State's 14th living-learning community, this one catering to emerging media and communications students.

Oct. 3, 2015: In an interview with The Star Press, Ferguson says he remains an evolutionist. "I think I've been very evolutionary. I think that really is the heart of where the Centennial Commitment (18 by '18) came from. When we spent a lot of time talking to a lot of people, 55 departments, alums, constituencies from the Legislature, donors and friends, it was really building on the legacy of Ball State University. We developed ...this vision from where beneficence meets the spirit of entrepreneurship ...We have used the term refreshed as a real, I think, good characteristic of evolving ..." The Centennial Commitment established 18 major goals for the university to accomplish by 2018, the University's 100th Anniversary.

Oct. 7, 2015: Ferguson travels to Atlanta to sign a new commitment to fight climate change, the increasing pace and intensity of which he and 45 other presidents are deeply concerned about. Ferguson attended the ceremony at Agnes Scott College as BSU president and as vice chair of a higher education climate leadership steering committee that he will begin chairing next July.

Nov. 14, 2015: Ball State University could be paid up to $277 million at auction to relinquish the license of WIPB and take the public television station off the air. The opening bid price of $277 million for WIPB is the maximum amount the government will pay the university to relinquish its license and go off the air. The opening price for WIPB to relinquish its UHF channel and move to a lower broadcast televsion brand (VHF) is $111 million. Ball State's board of trustees in September authorized President Paul Ferguson to participate in the preliminary auction process.

Dec. 1, 2015: Ball State grad David Letterman announces he is donating the props, sets and other historic collectibles from his tenure as host of "Late Night" on NBC and its successor the "Late Show" on CBS to Ball State.

Dec. 23, 2015: Ball State football coach Pete Lembo announces he's leaving for the University of Maryland, where he'll become an assistant coach and special teams coordinator.

Jan. 8, 2016: Ball State announces the hiring of Mike Neu, 45, as the new football coach. Neu spent the past two seasons as New Orleans Saints' quarterbacks coach. After completing his career in 1993 as the Cardinals' all-time leading passer with 6,221 yards and 43 touchdown passes, he went on to play three seasons professionally.

Jan. 25, 2016: Ball State announces Ferguson has as requested a two-month sabbatical leave and has submitted his resignation to be effective at the end of that leave. Trustees appoint Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Terry King as acting President. Dr. King served as Interim President in 2014 when former President Jo Ann Gora retired after 10 years.

Oregon State University President Alexander resigns amid LSU ...

Kenny Jacoby, Nancy Armour and Natalie Pate

USA TODAY

Corrections and clarifications: This story has been updated to correct the name of the school where F. King Alexander was president prior to his tenure at LSU. He worked at California State University, Long Beach.

Oregon State University’s Board of Trustees on Tuesday unanimously accepted President F. King Alexander’s offer to resign amid a cascade of outrage stemming from his role in Louisiana State University's sexual misconduct scandal.

Alexander’s resignation is effective April 1, but he will be on administrative leave until then. His resignation comes with a settlement agreement that will pay him an additional year’s salary, around $600,000.

Alexander was president of LSU from 2013 to 2019 during a time when the school systemically mishandled reports of sexual misconduct by students and by head football coach Les Miles, according to a report by law firm Husch Blackwell that was publicly released this month by LSU.

LSU hired Husch Blackwell in November after an investigation by USA TODAY found that officials in the university’s athletic department and broader administration repeatedly ignored complaints against abusers, denied victims’ requests for protections and subjected them to further harm by known perpetrators.

Alexander began his tenure at Oregon State University in July 2020. He spoke briefly at the meeting Tuesday.

"I offered my resignation to the Oregon State University to allow us to move on. Students have and always will be my top priority," Alexander said. "Their social and economic well-being is why many of us have committed a lifetime to public higher education."

Several board members apologized to survivors and others who were angered by what they saw as indifference to their feelings last week by the board. Lamar Hurd, a Portland Trail Blazers TV analyst who holds an at-large position on the OSU board, spoke through tears.

“I know people have been hurting,” said Hurd, who had to stop several times to compose himself. “In cases of sexual assault and misconduct and violence and things of that nature, I know that triggers a lot. I know all too often it gets overlooked. I just want to make sure you guys know it wasn’t overlooked.

“I’m just sorry for the pain people have had to endure,” Hurd added. “This isn’t what Oregon State is about or wants to be about.”

OSU Provost Edward Feser will hold presidential powers until the board is able to appoint an interim president. The OSU board chair will begin a search for an interim president by soliciting diverse, well-qualified candidates and consulting with a number of groups including faculty leadership and others.

Alexander’s resignation comes less than one week after the OSU board voted 12-2 to put him on probation rather than fire him, after the Husch Blackwell report became public and implicated him in LSU’s institutional failings.

The board also said it would hire an outside consultant to further investigate the problems at LSU, and asked Alexander to come up with an “action plan” to rebuild trust with the Oregon State community.

But that decision only escalated anger at Alexander, who was criticized by people both at Oregon State and in the Oregon statehouse for refusing to take accountability for the failings at LSU. Immediately after the board decision, the OSU Faculty Senate issued a vote of no confidence, and Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, who appoints board members, also expressed her displeasure.

"When we adjourned last week, we thought it was possible for President Alexander to repair the broken confidence and trust in his ability to lead OSU," OSU board chair Rani Borkar said Tuesday before the board’s executive session to consider whether to accept Alexander’s resignation, which he offered Sunday.

"After listening to and hearing important input from diverse members of our community, we now know that rebuilding trust is no longer possible. Simply stated, Dr. Alexander no longer has the confidence of the OSU community."

Alexander is the fifth person to face consequences in the aftermath of USA TODAY reporting that revealed widespread failings in the way LSU handled sexual misconduct and gender violence complaints.

The University of Kansas announced March 8 that it was parting ways with football coach Les Miles, who outside investigators found had inappropriate relationships with female student workers while he was at LSU. The departure of Kansas athletic director Jeff Long, who said he didn’t know about the allegations against Miles when he hired him in 2018, was announced two days later.

Two administrators in LSU’s athletics department who Husch Blackwell found did not properly report Title IX complaints also have been disciplined. Executive deputy athletic director Verge Ausberry and senior associate athletic director Miriam Segar were suspended, Ausberry for 30 days and Segar for 21.

Alexander has insisted he did nothing wrong when he was at LSU, and defended himself vigorously during last week’s public meeting. But on Monday, the chairman of the Louisiana State University Board of Supervisors sent a letter to OSU’s board, saying that Alexander had not been truthful in his testimony.

Alexander had misled OSU about his willingness to be interviewed for an investigation into LSU’s handling of sexual misconduct allegations under his watch, LSU Board Chairman Robert Dampf wrote.

Alexander told the board last week that the law firm Husch Blackwell never interviewed him for its investigation into LSU’s handling of sexual misconduct and dating violence, which finished in March and focused on systemic failures that occurred on Alexander’s watch.

Dampf pointed out that Husch Blackwell asked to interview Alexander twice. Oregon State’s general counsel, however, responded on Alexander’s behalf and said he would only take written questions.

“In the pursuit of truth, Husch Blackwell diligently collected information amounting to 2,500 documents totaling 75,000 pages and more than 60 interviews with LSU employees plus 27 community outreach interview sessions with 10 participants per session,” Dampf wrote. “But they had only one and a half pages of responses from Dr. Alexander.”

Alexander also claimed at last week’s hearing that he had built LSU’s Title IX office from nothing to having seven Title IX coordinators, one for each LSU campus. And he took credit for shutting down a problematic fraternity due to Title IX violations.

Dampf noted in his letter, however, that the Title IX coordinators were hired before Alexander’s arrival in 2013, and the fraternity was shut down because a pledge died during a hazing ritual, not because of Title IX issues.

Prior to his tenure at LSU, Alexander was the president of the California State University, Long Beach from 2006-2013. Before that, he served as president of Murray State University in Kentucky from 2001-2005, replacing his father, Kern Alexander, who had led school for seven years before stepping down in 2001.

The OSU board's executive and audit committee will now assess the university's Title IX reporting and survivor services, as well as respond to feedback and questions received from the Faculty Senate.

"The last few weeks have been a very difficult experience for all of us, the entire OSU community," Borkar said at the closure of the meeting Tuesday. "We will learn from this experience, yet we will not let it divide us. Let us heal together. Let us rededicate ourselves to excellent in teaching, student success, research discovery and service engagement."

MORE ON THE INVESTIGATION AT LSU

Two women say ex-Washington RB Derrius Guice raped them at LSU when he was a freshman

LSU mishandled sexual misconduct complaints against students, including top athletes

LSU knew in 2018 that officials kept allegations against athletes in-house. It did nothing.

Judge orders LSU to turn over complete police report sought in USA TODAY lawsuit

Former LSU football coach Les Miles was banned from contacting female students after 2013 probe

LSU athletic director wanted to fire Les Miles in 2013 for misconduct. The school didn't act.

Independent investigation finds that LSU routinely mishandled allegations of sexual misconduct

Heads should roll: LSU students want school to fire those implicated by investigative report

NY's Cuomo to resign as governor; Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul to succeed ...

ALBANY – New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced his resignation Tuesday under the weight of a sexual-harassment scandal that engulfed his administration and derailed his political future, capping a remarkable and rapid fall for a governor whose national profile had risen to extraordinary heights during the coronavirus pandemic.

Cuomo, a Democrat, said his resignation will take effect in 14 days, ending a decade-long run in the office he dedicated most of his adult life to keeping within his family — first as an adviser to his father, the late Gov. Mario Cuomo, before winning three terms himself.

"I think that given the circumstances, the best way I can help now is if I step aside and let government get back to government," Cuomo said in a video address.

"And therefore that's what I'll do, because I work for you and doing the right thing is doing the right thing for you."

With Cuomo stepping down, Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul of Buffalo will make history as the first woman to serve as New York governor. She will be sworn in after Cuomo's resignation takes effect and is set to fill out the remainder of his term, which runs through 2022.

More:Who is Kathy Hochul? What to know about NY's first female governor

Cuomo, 63, had defiantly resisted calls for his resignation over the the past five months, a period in which multiple women, including current and former state employees, publicly accused him of inappropriate or harassing behavior in some form.

His administration has also faced extensive criticism for purposefully withholding the true COVID-19 death toll of nursing home residents for months, a decision that has attracted scrutiny from federal prosecutors in Brooklyn.

The most damaging — and ultimately fatal — blow came Aug. 3, when state Attorney General Letitia James' office released a report that found Cuomo sexually harassed 11 women, including nine state employees, violating various state and federal laws along the way.

Among them was an executive assistant, Brittany Commisso, who accused Cuomo of reaching under her blouse and groping her breast during a November 2020 encounter at the Executive Mansion, which Cuomo continues to deny despite the attorney general's report finding the woman's claims "credible."

On Tuesday, Cuomo announced his decision in an on-camera address following a lengthy presentation by his outside attorney, Rita Glavin, who sought to cast doubt on many of his accusers' claims and continued to deny Cuomo had ever touched them inappropriately.

In his address, Cuomo denied the most serious of allegations and claimed James' report was slanted against him. But he acknowledged offending a trail of women with jokes and unwelcomed embraces that he suggested may have crossed a shifting cultural line.

Cuomo said he chose to step down for the good of state government, which has been paralyzed for the past week as he fought for his political life and coronavirus infections surged in New York and the country.

"Wasting energy on distractions is the last thing that state government should be doing," Cuomo said.

"And I can’t be the cause of that. New York tough means New York loving. And I love New York and I love you, and everything I have ever done has been motivated by that love and I would never want to be unhelpful in any way."

Cuomo ultimately faced an untenable choice: either step down or face impeachment, which looked increasingly like a fait accompli as more and more state lawmakers called for his ouster.

On Tuesday, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, a Democrat whose chamber was moving toward impeaching the governor, said Cuomo's resignation was "the right decision."

"The brave women who stepped forward were heard," he said in a statement. "Everyone deserves to work in a harassment-free environment."

More:Andrew Cuomo sexually harassed multiple women in violation of law, AG report finds

Andrew Cuomo's long rise, stunning fall

Andrew Mark Cuomo was first elected governor Nov. 2, 2010, marking a triumphant return to the state Capitol for the Cuomo family after his father served as governor from 1983 through 1994. He failed in his first bid for governor in 2002.

Since taking office in 2011, Cuomo used his unyielding aggression and distaste for bureaucracy to mold himself into the most consequential and powerful figure in New York government, flexing his muscle to push through major projects like the $4 billion Tappan Zee Bridge replacement and policy like the legalization of same-sex marriage.

He teetered between staying true to his moderate Democratic roots and moving more to the left as the party became more progressive, shepherding through a $15 minimum wage law in 2015 and paid family leave a year later.

Most of his tenure came with Republicans in control of the Senate, though he was able to cajole enough of them to support portions of his agenda, including stronger gun-rights laws in 2013 and the same-sex marriage law two years earlier.

In 2020, he rose to his highest level of national fame when his daily, PowerPoint-driven briefings gained an international audience amid the coronavirus pandemic, with many supporters coming to view Cuomo's hands-on approach as counterprogramming to a timid federal response led by then-President Donald Trump.

The televised briefings even won him an International Emmy award, and his popularity soared to a record 70% in polls. In October, he released a book, American Crisis, that recounted his response in the early days of the pandemic and landed on The New York Times Best Sellers List.

The book deal netted him an astounding $5 million from The Crown Publishing Group. But it has since become the subject of an investigation by James, who is examining whether he illegally used state resources to complete the project.

Cuomo's hard-charging style and penchant for threats helped contribute to his demise, alienating state lawmakers who may otherwise have been more willing to stave off potential impeachment proceedings had they viewed the governor as an ally instead of an enemy.

In the end, his downfall was as swift as his rise was long: Cuomo resigned just five months after former aide Lindsey Boylan published an essay detailing his alleged harassing behavior, including a 2018 meeting in which she claims he kissed her on the lips without consent as she left.

Boylan was followed by a number of other women who publicly shared similar stories of a governor who made inappropriate remarks and unwanted advances.

Among them was Charlotte Bennett, a 25-year-old former aide who said Cuomo asked repeated, invasive questions about her romantic life during one-on-one meetings last May and June, as the state was responding to COVID.

In interviews with the attorney general's investigators, Bennett said the governor asked whether she practiced monogamy and if she had ever been with an older man. Cuomo remarked that he would be comfortable being with a woman in her 20s, she said.

Taken together, Bennett believed Cuomo was propositioning her for sex.

"Without explicitly saying it, he implied to me that I was old enough for him and he was lonely," Bennett, a Westchester County native and Hamilton College graduate, said in an interview with CBS Evening News.

The attorney general's report corroborated the victims' accounts with contemporaneous text messages, notes and interviews with those familiar with the encounters. Glavin, Cuomo's attorney, has repeatedly challenged the strength of the report and challenged its particulars, claiming it to be an attempt to convict Cuomo through the media.

Cuomo continued to deny any significant misbehavior, saying he never touched anyone inappropriately while acknowledging he makes jokes and sometimes asks his staff about their personal lives.

Following the attorney general's report, Cuomo rejected the most serious of claims, saying he did not grope the executive assistant and suggesting some of his aides misinterpreted his remarks as flirtations.

During a direct-to-the-camera address on Aug. 3, he went so far as to play a slideshow of photos of him and other famous politicians kissing and hugging various people, suggesting his behavior was normal.

"I want you to know directly from me that I never touched anyone inappropriately or made inappropriate sexual advances," Cuomo said. "I am 63 years old. I have lived my entire adult life in public view. That is just not who I am and that's not who I have ever been."

On Tuesday, Cuomo acknowledged his behavior could have made some of the women uncomfortable, saying he did not appropriately account for changes in societal norms.

"In my mind, I've never crossed the line with anyone," he said during his speech, which he delivered from his Manhattan office. "But I didn't realize the extent to which the line has been redrawn. There are generational and cultural shifts that I just didn't fully appreciate. And I should have. No excuses."

More:Cuomo apologizes amid harassment claims: 'I never intended to offend anyone or cause any harm'

More:Here's what Charlotte Bennett told CBS' Norah O'Donnell about Cuomo's behavior

Kathy Hochul to become NY's 57th governor

Cuomo, who was the state's attorney general from 2007 though 2010, becomes the second New York governor to resign amid scandal since the turn of the century, following Eliot Spitzer's abrupt decision to step down in 2008 after his habit of soliciting prostitutes became public.

Hochul, 62, will become New York's 57th governor, breaking a 244-year streak of males holding the state's highest office.

She will also become the first governor to hail from outside New York City and the Hudson Valley since 1922, the final year in office for Gov. Nathan Miller of Cortland County.

In a statement, Hochul said she is prepared to become New York's 57th governor. Her office promised she would be commenting further in the near future.

"I agree with Governor Cuomo's decision to step down," Hochul said in her statement. "It is the right thing to do and in the best interest of New Yorkers."

Hochul was first elected lieutenant governor when Cuomo won a second term in 2014. She replaced Robert Duffy, the former Rochester mayor who was Cuomo's first lieutenant governor and declined to seek re-election.

A Democrat and former Erie County clerk, Hochul served in Congress in 2011 and 2012 after scoring an upset win in a special election following the resignation of Rep. Chris Lee.

She lost her bid for re-election to Chris Collins, who later stepped down after he pleaded guilty to insider trading charges and was later pardoned by Trump.

Hochul is well liked in Albany, and she has dutifully crisscrossed the state to tout the Cuomo's administration's policies.

Now she will inherit immediate challenges: The state is seeing an increase in COVID-19 cases as the delta variant spreads, leading to questions over whether the state will attempt to reinstitute a mask mandate or other similar pandemic-era restrictions.

Hochul's elevation to the governor's office was hailed by a number of state and federal officials who said she is well-prepared to become the state's chief executive.

"I have full confidence that Lt Gov. Hochul will establish a professional and capable administration," U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer, D-New York, said in a statement. "I have spoken with Lt Gov. Hochul and look forward to working together to help the people of New York."

With Hochul becoming governor, state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Yonkers, will take over some of the lieutenant governor's duties until Hochul appoints someone to the role.

"Gov. Hochul is a dedicated leader, and united, we will get the people’s work done," Stewart-Cousins said.

More:Amid increasing calls to resign, Cuomo finds few allies in Albany. How it happened

More:Cuomo chastised states, Trump for obscuring COVID information. Now he's accused of the same

Cuomo remains under investigation

Cuomo and his administration remain the subject of several investigations or inquiries that could continue to spell trouble for him even after his resignation.

Albany County District Attorney David Soares and Sheriff Craig Apple have opened a criminal investigation into Cuomo, while district attorneys in Manhattan, Westchester County, Oswego County and Nassau County have also pledged to examine James' report for possible criminality.

The FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office in Brooklyn have been investigating Cuomo's administration regarding its counting of nursing home residents who died of COVID-19.

For months, Cuomo and the state Department of Health refused to release the number of nursing home residents who died in hospitals, instead only revealing those who died in the homes themselves. As a result, the true death toll was underrepresented by more than 40% for months.

Cuomo's office retained high-profile defense attorney Elkan Abramowitz to represent the governor and his team during the federal probe.

James's office, meanwhile, is still investigating Cuomo's $5 million book deal, which he struck in the midst of the pandemic. At issue is whether Cuomo used state resources on the book, which is prohibited by law.

"The investigation with respect to the book and whether or not public resources were utilized is ongoing and it's separate and apart from this (sexual harassment) investigation," James said Aug. 3.

Jon Campbell is a New York state government reporter for the USA TODAY Network. He can be reached at JCAMPBELL1@Gannett.com or on Twitter at @JonCampbellGAN.

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MDOC head Pelicia Hall resigns as head of troubled state prison ...

Pelicia Hall is resigning as commissioner of the Mississippi Department of Corrections, a department spokeswoman said Tuesday.

News of Hall's resignation came the same day MDOC announced a statewide lockdown of prisons in response to a "major disturbance" Sunday that left one inmate dead and two others injured.

Hall will leave MDOC in mid-January to take a job in the private sector, according to a press release. It's unclear what the job will be, but Hall said it will allow her to be an "advocate for criminal justice reform and to support better wages and working conditions for the Department of Corrections employees."

Hall, a lawyer, served as chief of staff to the MDOC commissioner for two years, before Gov. Phil Bryant promoted her in 2017 to replace her boss, Marshall Fisher, who became commissioner of the Mississippi Department of Public Safety.

Fisher also announced his resignation Tuesday.

Gov.-elect Tate Reeves has not announced who he will appoint to be the next MDOC commissioner.

Hall had spoke to lawmakers at the outset of the 2019 legislative session, asking them to exempt MDOC from parts of public records laws — just a few years after the largest public corruption scandal in state history resulted in former MDOC Commissioner Chris Epps being imprisoned.

Hall's successor will face daunting challenges, including a shrinking budget, a shortage of guards, deteriorating facilities and gang violence.

Fisher:Mississippi Public Safety Commissioner Marshall Fisher resigns

Prisons:Mississippi prisons on lockdown: 1 inmate killed, 2 injured at SMCI

According to a 2016 report from the U.S. Department of Justice, Mississippi has the third highest incarceration rate in the country.

South Mississippi Correctional Institute in Leakesville has been on lockdown all year due to a guard shortage.

At a 2018 federal trial, three inmates at East Mississippi Correctional Facility near Meridian described instances of failing plumbing, such as sewage backups that caused feces to seep through shower and cell drains, or broken, unusable cell toilets. One inmate said the water in his cell's sink ran black.

Prisons bribery scandal:Epps going to jail; bond revoked

This summer, the Marshall Project published documents that showed how the warden of Wilkinson County Correctional Facility — a privately run prison that houses state prisoners — relied on gangs to help control inmates.

At a rally outside the governor's mansion in November, advocates for prison reform said state inmates suffer from a lack of medical care and guards are unable to stop fights and stabbings.

"They don't want y'all to know what's going on behind prison walls," said Donnell Jones, a former prisoner.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Contact Giacomo "Jack" Bologna at 601-961-7282 or gbologna@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @gbolognaCL.

Ex-Michigan health department head receives $155K following ...

The former director of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services will receive more than $155,000 in exchange for "releasing all claims against" the state, according to a separation agreement provided to the Free Press.

The agreement states the money provided to Robert Gordon constitutes nine months of pay and health care costs. Gordon resigned in January after signing a new employment agreement the previous October that included a $182,000 salary, according to records obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.

Reached Monday, Gordon declined to comment.

On Feb. 2, the Free Press asked the health department for any information about general payments made to Gordon as a result of his departure. A health department attorney stated on Feb. 3, "the department searched for this information and has no such information in the department's possession."

The agreement for $155,506.05 is dated Feb. 22. It's signed by Gordon and Mark Totten, chief legal counsel for Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

Health department spokesman Bob Wheaton declined to answer specific questions about the agreement.

"This agreement is between the State of Michigan and Robert Gordon and speaks for itself," Wheaton said.

He referred additional questions to the Office of the Michigan Attorney General. A spokeswoman for the attorney general said they could not answer questions due to attorney-client privilege, indicating they represent the state and not Gordon.

Whitmer press secretary Bobby Leddy said agreements with confidentiality conditions and a "release of claims are fairly standard practice."

"Per the terms of the agreement, we can’t comment further on a personnel matter," Leddy said.

More:Michigan health department director Robert Gordon resigns

More:Whitmer won't say why former health director Robert Gordon left MDHHS

Gordon abruptly resigned as head of the state's health department in late January, announcing his departure on Twitter. In a statement issued shortly thereafter that announced Elizabeth Hertel would be acting department director, Whitmer did not say why he was leaving or thank him for his service.

The director's decision to step down amid an ongoing health crisis prompted considerable questions, but the governor repeatedly avoided giving direct answers when asked whether she requested he resign. The key to her answer appears in the separation agreement: it states that if asked, the state will say Gordon voluntarily resigned.

The governor would later thank Gordon for his service and wish him well.

Gordon joined the department in January 2019 shortly after Whitmer took office. He worked with the governor and health leaders to implement the state's immediate and ongoing responses to the pandemic, including measures that at times closed many business. But the measures also helped distribute millions of masks, increased testing capacity and spread awareness about the virus.

Lawmakers and many other critics of the state's response directed much of their ire toward Gordon.

"I was stunned to hear Robert Gordon signed a taxpayer funded hush money agreement after his departure from the Whitmer administration," said Rep. Matt Hall, R-Emmett Township, who led a special COVID-19 committee last legislative session.

"It raises questions about what Gov. Whitmer is trying to keep quiet about her administration's response to the COVID-19 pandemic."

After the Michigan Supreme Court effectively invalidated many of Whitmer's executive orders pertaining to the pandemic, Gordon issued essentially the same mandates under state laws unaddressed by the court. That included an order in November temporarily banning indoor dining and indoor contact sports, both of which remained in place for weeks after the initial suggested end of the ban.

Whitmer, Gordon and other experts would point to data indicating a correlation between improving COVID-19 trends and the implementation of restrictions. Before the November mandates, Whitmer warned additional measures by the state would be needed if case rates, test positivity, hospitalizations, deaths and other indicators did not improve.

More:Chanting 'open up now,' protesters target Michigan health director Robert Gordon's home

More:Robert Gordon, Barb McQuade among Michigan members on Joe Biden transition team

Critics argued the orders were unfair, blistering the department for not ever establishing clear data points — like a red line for case rates — indicating when businesses could ease restrictions.

In December, protesters gathered outside Gordon's Lansing home, calling on him to "open up now." The same month, a Republican senator called for Gordon's resignation, citing the state's response to the pandemic.

“Director Gordon has issued statewide mandates shutting down small businesses without providing them the opportunity to operate safely — a move that has pushed these hardworking small business owners into bankruptcy through no fault of their own," Sen. Aric Nesbitt, R-Lawton, said in November.

In the days after Gordon's departure, Whitmer said he led the department during "grueling" and "unimaginable circumstances."

Since he left, lawmakers from both parties have publicly said they've found it easier to communicate with the department under Hertel.

Hertel has a second hearing before the Senate Advice and Consent Committee this week. One lawmaker, Sen. Lana Theis, R-Brighton, has already stated the Senate should consider rejecting her appointment.

Contact Dave Boucher at dboucher@freepress.com or 313-938-4591. Follow him on Twitter @Dave_Boucher1.

CSU Chancellor Joseph Castro resigns after USA TODAY ...

California State University Chancellor Joseph Castro resigned, effective immediately, the CSU Board of Trustees announced in a news release Thursday evening after a marathon closed-session meeting.

The announcement came two weeks after a USA TODAY investigation revealed he mishandled years of sexual harassment, bullying and retaliation complaints against a senior administrator while he was president of CSU Fresno.

The investigation sparked immediate and widespread outcry from students, faculty, staff, lawmakers and others, many of whom called for Castro to resign or an independent investigation into his handling of the matter.

“I have been honored to serve the California State University for more than eight years, including as its eighth chancellor, and the decision to resign is the most difficult of my professional life,” Castro said in the news release. “While I disagree with many aspects of recent media reports and the ensuing commentary, it has become clear to me that resigning at this time is necessary so that the CSU can maintain its focus squarely on its educational mission and the impactful work yet to be done.”

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Executive Vice Chancellor Steve Relyea, chief financial officer, will serve as acting chancellor until the board names an interim chancellor, board chair Lillian Kimbell said. The board will launch an "initiative to strengthen institutional culture" across the CSU to bring it "to the forefront of Title IX innovation, accountability and response." Title IX is the federal law prohibiting sex discrimination in schools.

The board will vote at its meeting in March to conduct a "comprehensive systemwide assessment to provide insights, recommendations and resources to help advance CSU’s Title IX and civil rights training, awareness, prevention, intervention, compliance, accountability, and support systems," the board said. The assessment, it said, will begin next month at Fresno State.

“We appreciate Chancellor Castro’s cooperation with the Trustees and his decision to step down for the benefit of California State University system,” Kimbell said.

USA TODAY's six-month investigation, published Feb. 3, found Castro repeatedly declined to discipline the administrator, vice president of student affairs Frank Lamas, despite the school receiving at least a dozen sexual harassment, bullying and retaliation complaints against him over six years. Castro knew of at least seven of the complaints, USA TODAY found, but he praised Lamas publicly, wrote him glowing performance evaluations and endorsed him for a prestigious lifetime achievement award, which Lamas won.

The university launched a Title IX investigation into Lamas in November 2019 after a doctoral student who worked for him full-time filed a formal complaint saying he repeatedly touched her against her wishes, made inappropriate sexual comments and implied he'd help her get a promotion in exchange for sexual favors. An outside law firm the school hired to investigate found Lamas responsible for sexually harassing her, engaging in “abusive workplace behavior” and creating a “culture of fear,” records show.

Lamas denied all allegations of wrongdoing, saying his exemplary career ended unfairly because of people “with an obvious ax to grind.” He said he was upset the law firm didn't draw upon any of the 13 reference letters and character testaments submitted on his behalf by people who spoke positively of him, including a 2017 letter from Castro.

Rather than fire Lamas, Castro chose to quietly settle the matter without disciplinary action. Castro authorized a $260,000 payment from the school to Lamas, along with a clean record in exchange for his retirement, an August 2020 settlement agreement obtained by USA TODAY shows. Although the settlement banned Lamas from working at the CSU again, Castro agreed to write him a letter of recommendation to help him find work elsewhere.

Three weeks after signing the settlement, the CSU board named Castro chancellor, a position he held since January 2021. As chancellor, Castro was tasked with ensuring Title IX compliance across the nation's largest university system, which has more than half a million students and employees across 23 campuses.

"As I know from my own lived experience, our state’s and nation’s diverse and talented young people – especially low-income and first-generation students – deserve access to the transformative power of higher education that so often can seem like an elusive dream," Castro said in his statement Thursday announcing his resignation. "I remain forever committed to ensuring that those students – our future leaders – are able to achieve that dream for themselves, their families and their communities.”

The board and Castro decided he should resign during a meeting Thursday that lasted more than 10 hours.

Before the meeting, the California Faculty Association’s CSU Long Beach chapter submitted to the board a petition with 220 faculty members' signatures calling for Castro's resignation. Organized by history professor Emily Berquist Soule and associate sociology professor Sabrina Alimahomed-Wilson, the petition said an outside investigation into Castro’s handling of Lamas is unnecessary because he had betrayed their confidence.

“There is no question that Castro not only failed to take action against his employee for violating university codes of conduct and state law, but instead rewarded Lamas for his reprehensible actions,” the petition said. “Our Chancellor’s behavior speaks clearly to faculty, staff, and students – Castro does not care about sexual harassment, gender discrimination, or the safety and well-being of those of us who are most likely to be the targets of predators like Lamas.”

Students and community members protested at Fresno State's campus on Feb. 5, holding signs calling for Castro to resign.

Castro said in response to questions from USA TODAY that he regretted writing Lamas a letter of recommendation, praising Lamas publicly, not taking formal disciplinary action against Lamas and not mentioning any of his concerns in Lamas’ performance reviews. The settlement, Castro said, was the best course to avoid a potentially costly lawsuit from Lamas and prevent him from exercising a clause in his contract that might have allowed him to return to the faculty even if Castro fired him.

Kimbell told USA TODAY that board members were unaware of the matter during the interview process. Then-chancellor Timothy White knew about it and approved of the settlement, Castro said.

A day after USA TODAY's investigation, California state Sen. Connie Leyva, D-Chino, and Assembly member Jose Medina, D-Riverside, called for an outside investigation into Castro's handling of the allegations. Leyva chairs the state’s Senate Education Committee, and Medina chairs the Assembly Higher Education Committee. Leyva, who said she would hold hearings based on the results of such an investigation, called for Castro to resign if USA TODAY's reporting was determined to be accurate, saying "it would call into clear question his ability to lead” the CSU.

Assembly member Jim Patterson, R-Fresno, said that he was "heartbroken" to learn how Castro handled the situation but that he believes the problems at the CSU extend beyond one person. A Fresno State alum and former two-term Fresno mayor, Patterson said his office will request a state audit into Title IX and human resources practices at Fresno State and up to four other CSU campuses to determine how widespread the problems are and how far back they go.

“I’m embarrassed for my university,” Patterson told USA TODAY. “It brings me no joy to have to shine the spotlight of accountability into my own university and the university system, but the facts demonstrate it has to be done.”

Kenny Jacoby is a reporter for USA TODAY's investigations team who covers universities, sports, policing and sexual violence. Email him at kjacoby@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @kennyjacoby.

Andrew Cuomo is resigning, but the investigations into his conduct ...

ALBANY, N.Y. – New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is giving up the powerful job he's dedicated most of his life to keeping within his family, but his resignation won't end a bevy of pending investigations into him and his administration.

No fewer than five district attorneys have made preliminary inquiries into Cuomo's alleged sexual harassment detailed in the scathing, 165-page report last week from Attorney General Letitia James' office that ultimately led to the governor's announcement Tuesday that he will resign in two weeks.

That includes Albany County District Attorney David Soares, who is in the midst of a criminal investigation into claims by a Cuomo executive assistant who says the governor groped her breast at the Executive Mansion last year.

There's also a pending investigation by federal prosecutors in Brooklyn who are looking into the Cuomo administration's handling of COVID-19 in nursing homes and its withholding of certain death data at the height of the pandemic last year.

And that's not all. James is still looking into whether Cuomo illegally used state resources to pen his book on the COVID-19 crisis, for which he is due to be paid $5.1 million. And the Assembly's impeachment inquiry continues on, though its immediate future is no longer clear.

The investigations and litigation could enmesh Cuomo for months or years after his scheduled departure from public office in two weeks.

"The inquiry into criminal conduct in our jurisdiction remains open and pending," Soares spokesperson Cecilia Walsh said Tuesday, just after Cuomo announced his pending resignation.

Five county DAs looking at Cuomo's conduct

Following James' report, Soares announced he was in the midst of an ongoing criminal investigation related to Cuomo. That investigation was bolstered Thursday by the filing of a criminal complaint by Brittany Commisso, the executive assistant who says Cuomo groped her.

The chief criminal prosecutors of New York, Nassau, Westchester, and Oswego counties also asked James’ staff for investigative evidence of possible Cuomo crimes committed within their respective jurisdictions.

“Our investigation continues,” Brendan Brosh, the communications director for Nassau County Acting District Attorney Joyce A. Smith, said Tuesday. Smith last week issued a statement confirming that her office would review “the deeply disturbing findings” in the report.

Cuomo’s resignation “does not have any impact” on a similar investigation by Westchester District Attorney Miriam E. Rocah’s office, public information officer Anna Young said in an email on Tuesday.

Danny Frost, communications director for Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance Jr., declined to comment on whether Cuomo’s departure from the public stage later this month would impact Vance’s investigation. Last week, Vance’s office confirmed contact with James’ office “pertaining to incidents that occurred in Manhattan,” the locale for Cuomo’s downstate office.

Oswego County District Attorney Gregory Oakes could not immediately be reached on Tuesday about the status of his Cuomo investigation. Last week, Syracuse.com reported that Oakes would request material from James’ office about allegations by Virginia Limmiatis, a Syracuse-area woman and energy company employee who told state investigators Cuomo groped her in 2017.

Separately, federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of New York have subpoenaed material related to Cuomo’s recent memoir as part of an investigation of the state’s handling of COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes on Cuomo’s watch, The Wall Street Journal reported in June. John Marzulli, a spokesman for Acting U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn M. Kasulis, declined to comment Tuesday.

Civil suits against Cuomo likely

Cuomo also is expected to face a civil lawsuit to be filed by Lindsey Boylan, the first woman who publicly alleged that he had sexually harassed her.

Boylan, a former aide to the governor, claims Cuomo made inappropriate comments toward her, including one remark about playing strip poker during a flight on an official state aircraft. She also says Cuomo once kissed her on the lips in 2018 as she left a meeting in his New York City office.

Her claim, via Twitter, prompted others to come forward. It also led to attacks on Boylan’s credibility by Cuomo staffers and lawyers.

James' report concluded Cuomo's administration illegally retaliated against Boylan by leaking documents to the press not long after her Twitter posts. Those documents showed Boylan was counseled for a workplace conflict shortly before her departure from the administration.

Andrew Cuomo resigns:A timeline of the New York governor's life and political career

Cuomo's attorneys have denied the administration illegally retaliated against Boylan and have continued to attack her credibility, as well as the credibility of the report itself, which Cuomo claims is biased against him.

"I think that women should be believed and they should be treated fairly," Cuomo attorney Rita Glavin said Tuesday shortly before Cuomo announced his resignation.

She continued: "I also believe that men should be believed and treated fairly. All people should be given that, and everybody should have a chance to respond, and everybody should be scrutinized with what they say by facts, context, and evidence. That hasn’t happened here."

Jill Basinger, an attorney for Boylan, did not immediately respond to a voicemail seeking comment on Tuesday.

However, Basinger told ABC News last week that Boylan intends to sue Cuomo and others in the administration.

"Our plan is to sue the governor and his and his coconspirators," Basinger said.

Book investigation, impeachment inquiry ongoing

James, meanwhile, told reporters last week that her investigation into Cuomo's book deal remains underway.

"The investigation with respect to the book and whether or not public resources were utilized is ongoing and it’s separate and apart from this investigation," she said Aug. 3.

The Assembly Judiciary Committee, which has been investigating various Cuomo-related issues to determine whether to impeach the governor, is scheduled to meet Monday.

Lawmakers had been moving toward impeaching the governor, but Cuomo's resignation could change their plans.

The Assembly could still pursue an impeachment that could prevent Cuomo from running for state office again. Such an endeavor, however, would cost millions of dollars in taxpayer money, which Cuomo himself highlighted during his resignation speech.

"It will consume government," Cuomo said of his potential impeachment. "It will cost taxpayers millions of dollars. It will brutalize people."

Assemblymember Charles Lavine, a Long Island Democrat who heads the Judiciary Committee, issued a statement Tuesday expressing faith in Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul's ability to lead the state. He did not make mention of the pending impeachment probe.

"As we begin to move forward, let us recognize the courage, strength and integrity of the women who dared to come forward," Lavine said. "Moreover, let us commit ourselves to continuing the battle for the inalienable rights of our sisters and daughters in New York and in every other state."

Kevin McCoy is a staff writer for USA TODAY. He can be reached at kmccoy@usatoday.com. Jon Campbell is the New York State Team editor for the USA TODAY Network. He can be reached at JCAMPBELL1@Gannett.com or on Twitter at @JonCampbellGAN.

Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe to resign, endorses Luke Holland as ...

Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe plans to resign the seat he has held since 1994, setting up what could be major changes in the state’s political landscape just weeks before candidate filing.

Inhofe, 87, said in an interview Thursday that he and his wife, Kay, “have decided that we need to have time together.”

Inhofe, a Republican, said he had been mulling for a while the right time to leave the Senate.

“I didn’t make a solid decision until two or three weeks ago,” he said. “There has to be one day where you say, ‘All right, this is going to be it.’”

He said he was “absolutely” at peace with the decision.

Inhofe offers endorsement of Luke Holland

In the interview, Inhofe endorsed his chief of staff, Luke Holland, to replace him and said he would campaign for Holland before the Republican primary, set for June 28. Inhofe said Holland was the most qualified person to carry on his work and retain a “perfect staff.” Holland is originally from Bartlesville.

Under a new state law, Inhofe had to announce his resignation by March 1 to trigger a special election that could be held at the same time as this year’s general election. Inhofe said he will continue to serve until the next Congress begins in January, when his successor will take over.

More:Sen. Jim Inhofe, 87, to step down after replacement elected

Inhofe resignation rumors swirling for weeks

Rumors of Inhofe’s resignation have been circulating for weeks, and some potential candidates for the seat have been positioning themselves for a Senate campaign. Among them are U.S. Reps. Kevin Hern, R-Tulsa, and Markwayne Mullin, R-Westville. Former Oklahoma state House Speaker T.W. Shannon, who ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate in 2014, is also interested.

Gov. Kevin Stitt, a Republican, dismissed suggestions Friday that he would run for the seat. Stitt is seeking a second four-year term this year.

"My focus continues to be on delivering a top ten state by working with my friends in the Legislature to advance transformational conservative reforms that protect freedoms and benefit all 4 million Oklahomans," the governor said.

It's not clear what Democrats might run for the seat, though the Republican nominee would likely be heavily favored.

Inhofe said he wanted to talk to more people about his plans before making an official announcement, but leaks in Washington, D.C., forced him to go public before he was ready.

More:Oklahoma senators blast Russia's invasion of Ukraine, representative calls out Biden

Inhofe was just reelected in 2020 to another six-year term. He got two-thirds of the vote against Democrat Abby Broyles.

Inhofe elected to U.S. Senate in 1994

Inhofe, a former mayor of Tulsa and former state legislator, was elected to the U.S. House in 1986 and served there until winning the Senate seat vacated by Democrat David Boren in 1994.

The senator served in the previous Congress as chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, though he lost that position when Democrats took over the Senate last year. He is now the top Republican on the panel, where he has exerted major influence for years over Department of Defense policies.

More:Oklahoma Sen. Inhofe's influence seen in defense bill, which heads to Biden's desk

He said Thursday he wants to work on one last defense bill before leaving, and he predicted it would be a struggle.

Inhofe forced a vote last year on adding more money to the bill than President Joe Biden had requested. His effort succeeded and was duplicated in the House.

Inhofe also spent many years as chairman or top Republican on the Environment and Public Works Committee, where he steered millions of dollars to Oklahoma for transportation projects. As part of his work on the committee, he became known as the leading skeptic in Congress about man-made global warming and once took a snowball onto the Senate floor.

Inhofe said his decision to leave the Senate had nothing to do with the attempt by the state Republican Party last year to censure him for not voting to reject Electoral College votes cast for Biden in Arizona and Pennsylvania.

Sen. James Lankford, also a Republican, is up for reelection this year, meaning state voters will be casting ballots in two U.S. Senate races, a rare occurrence since the terms are staggered.

Candidate filing is set for April 13-15.