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SALT LAKE CITY — After a public power struggle followed by months of negotiation, the University of Utah board of trustees voted 8-1 Thursday to approve a new memorandum of understanding between the U. and the Huntsman Cancer Foundation.
The agreement addresses the governance and finances of the Huntsman Cancer Institute moving forward, said University of Utah President David Pershing.
The agreement "supplements previous memorandums of understanding between the U. and the Huntsman Cancer Foundation," Pershing said.
It "ensures that we will continue to put the patient at the center of a variety of therapies that go beyond cancer treatment while safeguarding the role of basic research into finding cancer cures and preserving the resources the institute needs to fulfill its mission," Pershing said.
Dr. Lorris Betz, acting senior vice president of heath sciences, said Huntsman Cancer Foundation CEO Peter Huntsman had approved the agreement earlier. A telephone message to Huntsman was not immediately returned.
The announcement ends months of negotiation between the university and the foundation. A simmering dispute erupted in late April when Pershing and Dr. Vivian Lee, former senior vice president of U. health sciences, fired Huntsman Cancer Institute CEO Mary Beckerle via email.
The firing ignited a media blitz from Jon Huntsman Sr., who called for Pershing and Lee to be ousted from the U. Two protests on campus from cancer patients, institute faculty and students followed.
Beckerle was quickly reinstated and Lee resigned. In a parting email to faculty, Lee expressed sadness over the public divide between the U. and the Huntsman Cancer Institute that followed Beckerle's firing.
Related:
U.'s analysis of relationship with Huntsman Cancer Foundation nearing completion
A consulting firm that is examining the complex financial relationships between the University of Utah, Huntsman Cancer Institute and Huntsman Cancer Foundation could be finished with its analysis by the end of the month.Pershing announced he has moved up the timetable of his planned retirement as university president, but he has said he will remain in the position until the Utah State Board of Regents hires his successor.
A nationwide search for the next president is underway to be followed by a search for Lee's successor.
According to a two-page newspaper ad benefactor Jon M. Huntsman Sr. took out in mid-May, the heart of the rift between the parties was a $54 million dispute over how much the U. should pay toward the Huntsman Cancer Institute
The advertisement, placed in both Salt Lake daily newspapers, alleged that the U. "instigated" the dispute.
The board of trustees approved the new agreement with no public discussion. U. officials said copies of the agreement would be released later Thursday.
Following the vote, Pershing read from prepared statement that said, in part: "As Jon Huntsman has always said, cancer moves fast and we must move faster. We are gratified to have emerged from several months of discussion better positioned to bring together our shared resources, world-class talent and experience to fight cancer and care for our patients."
