LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) — Michigan State University’s fallout from the Mel Tucker scandal just got messier.

Brenda Tracy, the activist who came forward about former head football coach Tucker’s harassment, says her nonprofit collapsed after the university failed to shield her identity. Known nationally for her work, Tracy had built her nonprofit, Set The Expectation, into a platform that partnered with schools and athletic programs on sexual assault prevention.

MSU accused of weaponization.

MORE NEWS: IRS Documents: Brenda Tracy Didn’t Make Money Running Her Nonprofit

In a new federal filing on September 20th, Tracy’s lawyers argue MSU “weaponized litigation filings, media communications, and institutional authority to stigmatize her, destroy her nonprofit and speaking business, and silence her,” The Detroit News reported.

The amended lawsuit lands weeks after MSU trustees asked a judge to dismiss her case, accusing Tracy of trying to cash in on Tucker’s scandal with a multimillion-dollar payout. Trustees insisted they were not responsible for enforcing misconduct policies.

But Tracy’s lawyers argue the opposite: that the institution itself played a role in her collapse. Her nonprofit, they wrote, has since dissolved. She is now seeking damages.

Mel Tucker’s sexual harassment suit.

The legal fight follows MSU’s own investigation that concluded Tucker sexually harassed Tracy, who had been invited to campus as part of her advocacy work. MSU fired Tucker in October 2023.

Tracy’s amended lawsuit also takes aim at the school’s donor culture.

She says MSU never disclosed that Tucker’s attorney doubled as the general counsel for United Wholesale Mortgage—the company led by billionaire donor and MSU basketball alumni Mat Ishbia. The overlap, Tracy argues, creates at least the “appearance of donor-driven influence.”