EAST LANSING, Mich. (WSYM) - Interim Michigan State President state John Engler says he's excited to testify before Congress, later this month to discuss the progress the school has made to avoid another Larry Nassar scandal.
FOX 47's Marcus Dash spoke with John Engler Friday. It was his first interview since the Senate hearing was announced.
We've seen Nassar survivors and institutional leaders testify on Capitol Hill, including former MSU President Lou Anna Simon. Engler tells me, he expects this hearing to be about what they are doing to make sure there isn't another Larry Nassar.
"It'll be more focused on the solutions. In other words, what are the things that have been done to make sure that whether it was Larry Nassar or Olympic officials, that the abuse could never happen again," said John Engler.
John Engler says it's an opportunity to show what they have done in the healthcare departments, like increased staffing, and making sure people in the medical field follow guidelines that were ignored by Nassar.
"Safety for medical procedures, that there is accountability for medical providers, that there is appropriate record keeping," said Engler.
Engler is referring to protocols put into place for the school to be more thorough and add more protection for children.
"We watch out for minors and make sure that they and their guardians are fully aware of what any procedure might be. Make sure consent is properly obtained and that procedure itself is properly carried out," said Engler.
Even one of his bigger critics MSU Trustee Dianne Byrum whose heading the search for the next president agreed with Engler, saying they've made many changes to make sure that these atrocities could never happen again.
"We've also done all sorts of changes to Title IX, we've increased counseling services on campus. We have a new policy for minors and chaperones, we have done numerous things," said Dianne Byrum.
The upcoming hearing is titled: Strengthening and empowering U.S. Amateur athletes: Moving forward with solutions. It's set for 2:30 pm on July 24th. Engler tells me there will be five others testifying, but he did not say who.
