MSU Board of Governors says it was unaware of new president's incident at Utah Tech

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — The Board of Governors at Missouri State University (MSU) has issued a statement, saying it was unaware of any incident by President Richard "Biff" Williams when he was offered his position at the university.

In a statement, MSU's Board of Governors had this to say about the pending lawsuit involving Williams:

The Board of Governors was not aware of the situation when they offered the position to President Williams. In mid-June, he informed the board chair that there was an issue. The board only recently became aware of the extent of the circumstances. Missouri State University's Board of Governors

The federal lawsuit against Utah Tech University names Williams as one of many accused of misconduct by three other staff members.

The plaintiffs claim that Utah Tech leadership (including Williams) was hostile toward Title IX and Title VII protections, and when they tried to make the university comply with its discrimination policies, they were met with "strong pushback, intimidation, discrimination, harassment, abuse, and retaliation from Utah Tech's highest leaders."

Williams is specifically accused of leaving an obscene display of two eggplants and a zucchini resembling male genitalia on the front porch of Vice President Jordon Sharp's home during his recovery from a vasectomy. The lawsuit says Williams falsely attributed the gesture and accompanying note to the three plaintiffs.

Once the incident was reported to human resources by the plaintiffs, the lawsuit alleges Utah Tech "knew of Williams' misconduct and condoned it by providing him a highly favorable separation agreement in lieu of discipline." The employees who eventually sued were told their complaints were being dismissed with Williams stepping down from the university.