resigned the following year, his combative attempt to turn the commissioner's office into a sort of chancellorship having failed.)
=== Resurgence and retrenchment under Tietz ===
William Tietz, MSU's ninth president, arrived in August 1977 just as economic conditions in the state were improving. With three of the four vice presidencies at the university open, Tietz imposed his stamp on the administration almost immediately. This included a strong emphasis on research, faculty development, better teaching, and diversity (particularly for Native Americans, the handicapped, and women). His aggressiveness, energy, and immediate re-budgeting of funds into faculty sabbaticals helped win over professors, who voted against unionization in 1978. Tietz's major goal, increasing research funding, was greatly helped by a 1981 decision of the legislature to refund indirect cost payments back to the university. This led to an immediate 15 percent recovery of federal funds, and in time private foundation funding rose significantly …
