LSU board member accused of harassment, retaliation
One of Gov. Jeff Landry's appointees to the LSU Board of Supervisors flew into a rage at LSU Health Shreveport when its staff would not perform a house call for her husband, threatening to fire multiple employees, according to a whistleblower complaint. She's also the subject of other complaints that allege she harassed several employees and meddled in the day-to-day operations of the medical school.
Esperanza Moran, who openly rallied for the dismissal of former LSU Health Shreveport Chancellor David Guzick, is the subject of an anonymous whistleblower complaint, at least one Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint filed by top LSU Health Shreveport employees and a separate complaint filed to Landry by a top administrator.
The Illuminator obtained documents cited in this report through a series of public records requests to LSU and the governor's office.
According to an anonymous whistleblower complaint filed with LSU, Moran went to LSU Health Shreveport just days after being appointed to the board and '[caused] a public scene in outrage' that an employee was not permitted to treat her husband at Moran's private residence.
'This incident has caused significant distress within the LSU Health Shreveport community, affecting the staff's health, morale and productivity,' the complaint reads. 'While causing the disturbance, Ms. Moran threatened to terminate staff and said she was the new chancellor and in charge of LSU Health Shreveport.'
The complaint goes on to say that Moran threatened to have Guzick, Sammy Wyatt, LSU Health Shreveport's chief compliance and investigation officer, and Sharon Dunn, vice chancellor for academic administration, fired from the university.
Guzick resigned from his position in April after Moran's months-long pressure campaign and has since accepted a position with the LSU System office. Dunn and Wyatt are still employed at LSU Health Shreveport.
Wyatt asked the governor to intervene, adding Moran's alleged actions are damaging to his personal and professional reputation, disrupting his ability to do his job as well as damaging LSU Health Shreveport's public trust.
'I am writing to request your assistance in resolving an ongoing issue with Ms. Esperanza Moran,' Wyatt wrote to Landry in December. 'She has been consciously, intentionally, and maliciously defaming, harassing, targeting, and retaliating against me, utilizing Power-Based Violence and creating a hostile working environment.'
Power-based violence is a term found in a 2021 Louisiana law approved in the wake of a Title IX scandal at LSU. It is defined as 'any form of interpersonal violence intended to control or intimidate another person through the assertion of power over the person.'
When a reporter asked her about the complaints after her Senate confirmation hearing at the State Capitol last week, Moran requested questions be sent to her via email. She has not responded to the emailed questions.
Landry spokeswoman Kate Kelly and LSU spokesman Todd Woodward have not responded to requests for comment.
SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
In its public records request to the governor's office, the Illuminator asked for any documents containing Landry's response to Wyatt's letter. No documents were provided.
Moran has not yet received state Senate confirmation. Senators typically vote to confirm governor's appointees in batches and are expected to endorse Moran by the time the legislative session adjourns June 12.
Sen. Alan Seabaugh, R-Shreveport, who represents Moran's district, said he would support Moran despite the complaints, noting that she has Landry's support.
Esperanza Moran lives in Shreveport and is married to wealthy businessman Scott Moran. The couple own several businesses, including Moran Oil Co., and give generously to Republican political campaigns, including Landry's.
The Morans also donate significant sums to LSU athletics, culminating in a plaza outside Tiger Stadium being named after Scott Moran when he gave money toward the 2012 remodel of the facility.
Wyatt referred questions about his complaint to his attorney, Steve Soileau, adding that he is considering suing over Moran's conduct.
'Due to the status of the investigations and referred investigations and possibilities of litigation, we do not feel it would be appropriate to comment on specific items at this time,' Soileau said in response to questions about Wyatt's letter to Landry. 'Mr. Wyatt's letter speaks for itself and he stands by it. His EEOC complaint is still pending.'
The 'referred investigations' involve Wyatt's work as the medical school's chief investigation officer. According to Wyatt's letter to the governor, some of these probes have been into Moran's personal friends, and one has been referred to the FBI, which Wyatt said in his complaint is looking into the incident along with state law enforcement.
It's unusual for a university board member to be the subject of an EEOC complaint, according to several longtime higher education observers. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is a federal entity responsible for investigating workplace discrimination.
'I've seen a lot of supervisors come and go over the years, but I have never encountered anything quite like that,' said Kevin Cope, an LSU professor that has been involved in faculty governance at LSU for multiple decades. He was contacted for reaction to Moran's alleged actions. 'In fact, although the supervisors and I have disagreed, I will say the supervisors usually behave themselves pretty well. So this I will characterize as highly unusual, not only for LSU, but indeed for the nation and for higher education.'
Politically appointed board members are not meant to be involved in the day-to-day running of a university, as it could threaten a school's accreditation. But the complaints allege Moran did just that.
LSU closed its investigation into the anonymous complaint just days after it was filed, according to the case file the Illuminator obtained. A reporter reached out to every individual named in the complaint as possibly involved. Some did not respond, but others confirmed they were not contacted for the investigation. Woodward did not respond when asked why not all of the people named were contacted.
During her Senate confirmation hearing, Moran was asked about the leadership of LSU Health Shreveport.
'There still needs to be some things cleared up,' Moran said. 'When you get the leadership working right, then everything trickles down, so I'm still working on that. I still have a little bit of work left to do.'
Board members do not have sole authority to decide who staffs administrative positions in a university. Though sometimes they are involved in search committees to hire a top administrator, their influence is weighted by faculty, staff, students and community members.
SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
American Press
5 hours ago
- American Press
Jim Beam column:Is cheaper insurance lost cause?
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry signed legislation last year that was favorable for property insurance companies, so I was a little upset when I got my annual home insurance premium statement. It was $3,097, which is $287 higher than last year's premium. I shouldn't have been surprised since most of the insurance bills I have received during my adult life have always been higher each year. I purchased a long-term care insurance policy in 1998 and the first year's annual premium was $694. It was $2,536 this past February. The Louisiana Illuminator reported last year that the bills Landry signed will benefit the insurance industry with new freedom to raise rates on customers, cancel policies and walk away with lighter legal penalties when they refuse to pay claims. The Illuminator said the bills were part of state Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple's agenda to create what he called a 'free market' for insurance companies in the state. Less regulation would bring in more companies, he said, and that should lead to lower rates. Two bills this year that might have given homeowners some relief didn't do it. One was defeated and the other one was watered down to do almost nothing. Since the 2024 laws didn't lead to lower rates for me, I decided to lodge a protest with my insurance agent. As it turns out, the woman I spoke with said the increase was an inflation factor that increased my home's replacement coverage. I have been dealing with that problem every year with my long-term care company. It said I could lower the premium each year if I lowered the amount the insurance would pay each day for nursing home care. It only pays $83 a day, so why would I lower something that is already too low. Yes, and that is exactly what happened at my insurance agent's office. I could lower my home replacement coverage to get a lower premium, but that isn't a wise choice. So I went online when I got home and paid the $3,097 premium. The average annual premium for a $300,000 home in Louisiana, probably twice the value of my home, is $6,184, which is No. 2 in the nation, according to Nebraska is No. 1 at $6,366. Florida is No. 3 at $5,728. It's $3,103 in Arkansas, $3,468 in Mississippi and $4,085 in Texas. Some of the pro-insurance company bills passed in 2024 may eventually reduce home insurance costs, but home and business owners are tired of waiting. Meanwhile, some companies have already started canceling or not renewing up to 5% of their policies each year allowed under a new law. A disabled citizen told me at exercise recently that she and others who live in a mobile home park have had their homeowner policies canceled. She appealed for some help. When new home insurance laws were passed in 2020, promises were made when Jim Donelon was insurance commissioner that rates would be lowered. However, the Illuminator said after four years, rates only increased. My Medicare premium has continued to increase over the years, along with my secondary healthcare insurance, and my prescription drug coverage. Almost any bill I get these days for anything is always higher. I am a living example of the high cost of auto insurance in Louisiana. You've seen what my home insurance costs, and my auto insurance is even higher. Because of two minor wrecks I had over a three-year period, the annual premium was over $4,536. One of those wrecks was wiped off the record and next year's premium will be $3,868, still much too high. The average annual car insurance rate in Louisiana is $2,734, third highest in the nation, according to Florida is the highest at $3,289. New Jersey is No. 2 at $2,768. It's $2,346 in Texas, $1,505 in Mississippi and $1,814 in Arkansas Real Reform Louisiana in a recent news release said Louisianans pay among the highest auto and homeowners insurance premiums in the country. It said the state's auto insurers have the third highest profit margins and some of the best loss ratios in the country. Isn't it amazing how long Louisianans have been waiting for lower home and auto insurance costs? Doesn't seem fair, does it? Jim Beam, the retired editor of the American Press, has covered people and politics for more than six decades. Contact him at
16 hours ago
Transgender runner Evie Parts sues NCAA and Swarthmore College for removal from track team
Long-distance runner Evie Parts sued the NCAA and Swarthmore College as well as members of its athletic department on the grounds they illegally removed her from the track team because she is a transgender athlete. Parts' lawsuit said the NCAA's ban on transgender athletes in women's sports did not have legal grounds because it's not a governmental organization and therefore does not have jurisdiction over Pennsylvania state law or the Title IX federal statute. She was removed from the team on Feb. 6, the day the NCAA issued its new policy on transgender athletes. Swarthmore men's and women's track coach Peter Carroll, athletic director Brad Koch and athletics officials Christina Epps-Chiazor and Valerie Gomez also were named in the lawsuit. According to the complaint, they sent Parts into 'such a depressive state that she engaged in self-harm and in one moment told a friend that she wanted to kill herself.' 'We stand by the allegations in the complaint,' said Susie Cirilli, an attorney who, along with the law firm Spector, Gadon, Rosen and Vinci, represent Parts. 'As stated in the complaint, the NCAA is a private organization that issued a bigoted policy. Swarthmore College chose to follow that policy and disregard federal and state law.' Swarthmore did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The NCAA chose not to comment. The NCAA changed its participation policy for transgender athletes to limit competition in women's sports to athletes assigned female at birth. That change came a day after President Donald Trump signed an executive order intended to ban transgender athletes from girls' and women's sports. Pennsylvania's state Senate approved a bill by a 32-18 margin on May 6 to ban transgender athletes from competing in women's and girls' sports at the collegiate and K-12 levels. But the state's Democratic-controlled House of Representatives isn't expected to vote on the bill. Parts joined the Swarthmore track team in the fall 2020 before then taking off the following four winter and spring seasons. She went back to the Division III team in 2023 to compete in the indoor and outdoor track seasons and in cross country. When the NCAA issued its ban, the lawsuit states, Parts was told by Epps-Chiazor and Gomez that she could compete with the men's team or as an unattached athlete. She would only receive medical treatment, the complaint says, if she competed on the men's team. Also, according to the lawsuit, Carroll and his staff were not allowed to coach Parts, she could not travel with the team, was not allowed to receive per diem or food and had to pay her way into meets. Parts also couldn't wear a Swarthmore uniform. Swarthmore 'fully reinstated' Parts on April 11, the lawsuit says, and she competed on the women's team until graduating in May. Parts won the 10,000 meters in April at the Bill Butler Invitational.
CBS News
19 hours ago
- CBS News
Transgender runner Evie Parts sues NCAA and Swarthmore College for removal from track team
Long-distance runner Evie Parts sued the NCAA and Swarthmore College as well as members of its athletic department on the grounds that they illegally removed her from the track team because she is a transgender athlete. Parts' lawsuit said the NCAA's ban on transgender athletes in women's sports did not have legal grounds because it's not a governmental organization and therefore does not have jurisdiction over Pennsylvania state law or the Title IX federal statute. She was removed from the team on Feb. 6, the day the NCAA issued its new policy on transgender athletes. Swarthmore men's and women's track coach Peter Carroll, athletic director Brad Koch and athletics officials Christina Epps-Chiazor and Valerie Gomez also were named in the lawsuit. According to the complaint, they sent Parts into "such a depressive state that she engaged in self-harm and in one moment told a friend that she wanted to kill herself." "We stand by the allegations in the complaint," said Susie Cirilli, an attorney who, along with the law firm Spector, Gadon, Rosen and Vinci, represents Parts. "As stated in the complaint, the NCAA is a private organization that issued a bigoted policy. Swarthmore College chose to follow that policy and disregard federal and state law." Swarthmore did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The NCAA chose not to comment. The NCAA changed its participation policy for transgender athletes to limit competition in women's sports to athletes assigned female at birth. That change came a day after President Donald Trump signed an executive order intended to ban transgender athletes from girls' and women's sports. Pennsylvania's state Senate approved a bill by a 32-18 margin on May 6 to ban transgender athletes from competing in women's and girls' sports at the collegiate and K-12 levels. But the state's Democratic-controlled House of Representatives isn't expected to vote on the bill. Parts joined the Swarthmore track team in the fall of 2020 before then taking off the following four winter and spring seasons. She went back to the Division III team in 2023 to compete in the indoor and outdoor track seasons and in cross country. When the NCAA issued its ban, the lawsuit states, Parts was told by Epps-Chiazor and Gomez that she could compete with the men's team or as an unattached athlete. She would only receive medical treatment, the complaint says, if she competed on the men's team. Also, according to the lawsuit, Carroll and his staff were not allowed to coach Parts, she could not travel with the team, was not allowed to receive per diem or food and had to pay her way into meets. Parts also couldn't wear a Swarthmore uniform. Swarthmore "fully reinstated" Parts on April 11, the lawsuit says, and she competed on the women's team until graduating in May. Parts won the 10,000 meters in April at the Bill Butler Invitational.
