During the public comment period of the Oct. 25, 2024, meeting, Tracy accused MSU of harming her by leaking her name during a confidential investigation into football coach Mel Tucker's sexual harassment of her.

After that meeting, Tracy said Friday, she was invited to meet with MSU's general counsel, Brian Quinn, and Title IX coordinator, Laura Rugless.

Inside an office at the Hannah Administration building, they discussed resolving her complaints before they reached court. The university wanted to, in effect, make things right with her, Tracy recollected during her public comments at the Friday meeting.

As Tracy recounted, Rugless told her that MSU could pursue "restorative justice" by releasing a public statement thanking Tracy and showing support for her and her work. 

And, Quinn said, "I know we have no right to ask, but we would be grateful if you would consider helping us with our policies," according to Tracy.

Tracy said she was open to the idea of helping develop better policies for MSU, but wouldn’t engage in further discussions unless the parties entered into formal mediation, a process in which a third-party helps people resolve disputes out of court.

"I also made it clear that day that I did not want to sue this institution," Tracy said. "My exact words were: 'I will only sue you if you force me.'"

During the meeting, Quinn said he would "get mediation going." But, according to Tracy, 15 months passed and an appointment was never scheduled.

So, Tracy said, she sued the university, alleging that an MSU board member leaked her name during a confidential investigation into Tucker’s sexual harassment of her.

MSU spokesperson Amber McCann said she could not comment on whether Tracy’s account is accurate. Quinn and Rugless did not immediately respond to requests for comment. 

"Brian, Laura, … behind closed doors, you were empathetic and supportive, but after waiting 15 months for mediation and exercising my right to sue this board, this institution is now retaliating against me," Tracy said at the Friday meeting.

After Tracy filed her suit in June, the university attempted to get her case thrown out in a Sept. 2 filing, in which it claims Tracy was attempting to turn MSU’s firing of Tucker into "her own multi-million-dollar windfall."

Referencing the stark difference between Quinn and Rugless' demeanors at the meeting and MSU's filing, Tracy asked: "So, what happened, President Guskiewicz? What changed?"

"An offer of restorative justice that was meant to help me has turned into a calculated decision by this institution to publicly degrade and humiliate me," Tracy added.

Tracy amended her complaint later to accuse MSU of failing to safeguard her identity during the Tucker investigation. She argued those disclosures "were not accidental" and exposed Tracy to ridicule, hostility and destroyed her reputation.

The case has since been slowed in court, as MSU argues that Tracy didn't file her amended complaint in time.

Tracy’s appearance at the meeting is the latest development in a years-long saga involving MSU, Tracy and Tucker.

In December 2022, Tracy, a rape survivor and advocate, reported to the university that Tucker sexually harassed her while she was working as a consultant for the football team. MSU fired Tucker for cause months later, in September 2023, days after USA Today published a report that revealed the existence of the investigation as well as Tracy's identity. 

Tracy has said that she permitted the USA Today reporter to publish the story after learning that her name had been leaked.

MSU hired law firm Jones Day to independently investigate whether someone associated with the university, including the board, leaked the existence of the investigation into Tucker or Tracy’s identity. 

That probe was unable to conclude that someone within MSU leaked information about the Tucker investigation, and found no evidence that any trustee knew Tracy’s identity, as the complainant before her name became public. It did, however, note that Trustee Dennis Denno did not cooperate with the investigation — a revelation Tracy has since suggested means he can't be fully exonerated of wrongdoing.

MSU hired Jones Day once again to represent it in the lawsuit, an arrangement Tracy says constitutes a conflict of interest. A law professor interviewed by the State News in September, however, said that conflict is unlikely since Jones Day had no loyalty to MSU when it conducted its independent investigation.

Reached for comment, MSU Spokesperson Emily Guerrant offered an apology to Tracy for the sexual harassment she experienced from former coach.

"No one engaging with the university should be subject to sexual harassment and we're very sorry that was the experience that Ms. Tracy had when she was working with the university," Guerrant said. "We appreciate that she brought forward this inexcusable behavior to the university's attention."