“This is a governing body that must be adhering to our own self-crafted bylaws, particularly since discussions and actions around ethics and compliance have been a central focus for this board,” Vassar said, adding that her dissenting vote was not meant to be a “disparagement” of the new chair.

Board Secretary Stefan Fletcher apologized for scheduling the vote past the deadline set by the bylaws, saying this was the closest meeting to said deadline.

Scott appeared to call for an amendment to the bylaws to change the deadline, but was stopped by Fletcher, who said board rules prevented the proposition from going to the floor without prior discussion.

How the board’s leadership is decided

The changes to MSU’s board leadership come as a result of a policy the board adopted in September 2023, which required that the board’s chair and vice chair would be selected based on a seniority system, rather than through contentious elections by the entire board. That policy will officially go into effect at the start of 2025, and Friday's confirmation vote was in accordance with the policy. 

Until now, every two years the board has voted to select a chair charged with leading, setting the agenda and speaking publicly for the board at events and with the media. But with the new decision, every year, the trustee who has been on the board the longest will have a chance to serve as chair, or they can decline, passing the offer to the next most senior trustee. The second most senior member has the chance to serve as vice chair.

When multiple board members share equal seniority, the chair and vice chair are decided by a “random selection process,” according to the board bylaws. Both Scott and Tebay started on the board in 2019.

That policy was adopted through a rare split vote by the board, with current board chair Dan Kelly and then-chair Rema Vassar voting against it. 

Vassar — who would become embroiled in a feud with Scott the next month that culminated in Vassar’s resignation as board chair — said the board was trying to “changes the rules on her” because she was the first Black woman to be board chair.

Scott, who put forward the policy in question, dismissed that allegation at the time. 

“Maybe I need to read more books, as I was told yesterday, maybe I’m losing my identity as a Black woman," Scott said. "But, I don’t think so. I think I’m making this decision for the good of the university that I love. I’m tired of seeing the fractalization of this board.”

While Scott was publicly at odds with Vassar for months — starting when she sent a letter to the rest of the board in October 2023 alleging widespread misconduct by then-chair Vassar — Tebay was part of a coalition on the board that kept quiet throughout last year’s infighting saga.

Tebay never made any public statements against Vassar, but did vote to refer Vassar and her ally on the board, Trustee Dennis Denno, to the governor for potential removal after an outside report into Scott’s allegations against Vassar recommended as such.

But, Tebay never making such public statements may have come to the chagrin of Scott. She only received support in public statements from Trustee Dianne Byrum following the release of the explosive letter, despite apparently hoping for the support of others.

In her first statement to the media after sending the letter, Scott alluded to the support of Trustee Renee Knake Jefferson and Tebay, telling members of the press to contact them to "verify the facts and for their comments."

But those comments never came (Knake Jefferson would clash with Vassar at a particularly contentious board meeting last October, which came shortly after the release of Scott’s letter, but Tebay was quiet).

Scott also fell short at that time to scrape up the necessary support of three trustees to add an agenda item to that October meeting for a vote on Vassar’s removal.

Tebay and Scott’s day jobs

Tebay works as the director of government and external relations at the Henry Ford in Dearborn, according to her biography on the board’s website.

Previously, Tebay — who holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree from MSU — worked as a fundraiser for state and federal Democratic political fundraising campaigns, and in corporate relations for nonprofit organizations and federal government agencies. 

In addition to her post as MSU trustee, Tebay serves on the MSU Research Foundation’s Board of Directors and the Volunteers of America Michigan board.

Scott is a practicing attorney, operating her Muskegon-based law firm Brianna T. Scott & Associates, PLLC, which she opened in 2005, according to her biography on the board’s website.

Before her foray into private practice, Scott, who received her bachelor’s degree from MSU, was hired as the first African American Assistant Prosecutor in the Muskegon County Prosecutor’s office. 

Scott also currently serves as governor of District 6290 of Rotary International, considered one of the largest service organizations in the world, and on the board for Access Health, a Muskegon-based nonprofit.