Former Mizzou president pens scathing tell-all letter

As Mizzou plunged into politically correct madness last fall, former University of Missouri President Tim Wolfe resigned amid continual protests, hunger strikes, and pressure from the Concerned Student 1950 group.

Wolfe has remained relatively quiet on his resignation, but now in a letter obtained by the St. Louis Post Dispatch, he comes out swinging.

To begin the letter, addressed to friends and several donors, Wolfe says, “As I stated in my last email, I resigned out of love for MU and the rest of the system and I felt that it was the right thing to do at the time to prevent further embarrassment and a potential Ferguson-like event on the MU Campus.” Wolfe also states that there were specific events, circumstances, and “unconscionable” behaviors that led to his resignation.

Wolfe then moves down his bulleted list of people and events to Chancellor Loftin. Chancellor Loftin also resigned amid protests at Mizzou last year. Wolfe argues that Loftin did nothing to help Mizzou and angered many people with his actions, saying, “every Dean at MU demanded his removal and he shifted the focus of Concerned Student 1950 to me from him once he discovered his job was in jeopardy in late September.”

Also included in the letter is the Mizzou football team. In November of last year, the football team famously threatened to strike for the rest of the season unless Wolfe resigned. Of the actions of the football team, Wolfe says, “The football team’s decision to strike is what actually brought most of the national attention to our university. In hindsight, the $1 million penalty associated with forfeiting the game against BYU would have paled in comparison to the more than $25 million in lost tuition and fees MU will realize with reduced enrollment this Fall.”

Wolfe continues, “The football team’s actions were the equivalent of throwing gasoline on a small fire. Coach Pinkel missed an important opportunity to teach his players a valuable life lesson. The end result could be a financial catastrophe for our university.”

At the center of the Mizzou controversy was the Concerned Student 1950 protests, which infamously called for a safe space and refused to let media in. Wolfe touches on these protests saying, “My sudden decision to resign was largely motivated by a significant pending event that was to occur on the campus the day I resigned. The FBI, Missouri Highway Patrol, Columbia Police Department and MU Campus police were aware of a significant Ferguson protester on our MU campus and there was a threat that more were coming in for significant protest that day. So as to prevent injury and further embarrassment on our campus, the only way to relieve the pressure and stop the momentum was for me to resign.”

Finally, Wolfe addresses interim president Michael Middleton. Middleton, a former law professor, was appointed as interim president following Wolfe’s resignation. Speaking about Middleton, Wolfe says, “Michael had been in charge of the MU diversity and inclusion issues for more than 17 years and had a “long-term” relationship with Jonathan Butler, the leader of the Concerned Student 1950.”

Wolfe also asks several questions of Middleton and the board, including, “Why did the Board of Curators decide to hire the leader who had failed miserable in his capacity as the long time leader on diversity issues on the MU Campus? Why did Michael Middleton choose not to stop the growing protest in spite of his relationship with Jonathan Butler and the minority students on the MU campus?”

Wolfe finishes up the letter ominously by saying, “Unfortunately, my silence has resulted in my name being attached unfairly to the issues of racism and incompetent leadership. I believe the University of Missouri is under attack and current leadership from the Board on down is frozen. You and I can either continue to watch the after effects of what has been inappropriately described as ‘The Perfect Storm’ or we can do something about this. I want to do something about this and I implore you to do the same.”

Follow the author of this article on Twitter: @ChrisNuelle