Guskiewicz touted his two-year term as university president at MSU saying, “Together, we have accomplished so much in a relatively short period of time.” 

The university president said many of his accomplishments over the past few years have been propelled by a "one team philosophy" that allows for progress "when we row together towards common goals."

"While many across this university community have embraced that spirit, it has become increasingly clear that there are differing perspectives within the Board of Trustees regarding how best to move MSU forward," Guskiewicz continued. "At times, too much energy has been spent revisiting past conflicts and internal disagreements rather than focusing collectively on the opportunities and aspirations ahead of us.” 

The dissension among the board has created an "unsustainable situation," Guskiewicz wrote.

“What is perhaps most troubling is the actions of some to abuse their access to privileged and confidential information to misrepresent facts, manipulate situations and selectively use and leak that information to promote personal agendas,” Guskiewicz said. 

 Prior to assuming the role of MSU's president in 2024, Guskiewicz wrote in a 2023 letter that he would only accept the job if the board promised he could lead "without undue interference." That interference has led Guskiewicz to step down from his position as the university's president, following the "ongoing and continuous nature of the aforementioned actions."

Guskiewicz's stepping down as MSU's president came soon after the Board of Trustees approved revisions to its code of ethics and conduct in a 5-3 vote during a special meeting on May 17, despite internal pushback. The changes emphasized public "loyalty" to the university and bar trustees from publicly dissenting from majority board decisions in their individual capacities.

“Despite this discouraging behavior by a few trustees, I am appreciative of the five trustees who recently voted to strengthen their code of ethics and conduct in alignment with what our national governance advisors have said are best practices for university boards,” Guskiewicz wrote. 

Trustees Rema Vassar, Mike Balow and Dennis Denno, who voted against the revisions, were not available for comment.

Similar to the email, during remarks over Zoom to Clemson’s board Wednesday, Guskiewicz said he will continue to promote his philosophy of “one team” leadership while acting as university president at Clemson. 

"My commitment is to foster a culture of collaboration and shared governance, transparency and mutual respect," Guskiewicz said to Clemson's board.

He says he will remain as president of MSU “over the next several weeks to help support a smooth and successful transition.” 

MSU spokespersons Amber McCann and Emily Guerrant could not be reached at the time of publication.