By Harold C. Ford
A church-state controversy lasting four months at Mott Community College (MCC) – centering on charges of religious proselytizing by its president, Shaunda Richardson-Snell – morphed into a unifying statement unanimously adopted by the MCC Board of Trustees at its meeting on February 23, 2026.
The statement reads, in part: “Mott Community College affirms the constitutional right to freedom of religion and respects the deeply held beliefs of all individuals … As a public institution, the college also has a responsibility to maintain an environment that is inclusive and welcoming to people of all faiths and those with no religious affiliation.”
Origin of the controversy
The controversy began at the 33rd Annual Peace and Dignity Ceremony at MCC on October 13, 2025 when MCC President Shaunda Richardson-Snell allegedly made Christian-based proselytizing comments to Native American attendee Wayne Wilson.
Celia Perez-Booth, a retired MCC professor, first brought the matter to the attention of the MCC board on Oct. 27, when she excoriated Richardson-Snell for alleged “offensive evangelistic behavior.”
Perez-Booth reported that Richardson-Snell had asked Wilson, whom she identified as an MCC “guest from the Navajo Reservation. … if he had been saved and accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior.” She deemed Richardson-Snell’s queries to be “contemptuous, despicable behavior.”
“American Indians were not born in sin like Christians, so we do not need to be saved,” Perez-Booth said. “Your offensive behavior will never be welcome in our communities, ever.”
At the same Oct. 27 meeting, Trustee Art Reyes said he was told by a MCC student that Richardson-Snell had asked him at a college event “if he was aware of the one truth and that there was only one truth.” Further, according to Reyes, the student was warned by Richardson-Snell of “a struggle for the world and the devil was involved in trying to take us over.”
Additional concerns of MCC faculty and others
Prior to that Oct. 27 meeting, Brian Littleton, president of the Mott Community College Education Association, issued an Oct. 16 statement that expressed “faculty concerns about religious expression on campus.”
Littleton’s statement indicated “some faculty have felt uncomfortable with President Richardson-Snell’s personal outward expression of religious faith during workplace interactions.”
Littleton wrote that some faculty also “… feel pressured to agree with or appear complicit in Richardson-Snell’s religious expression … Richardson-Snell’s religious expressions have contributed to a potentially hostile work environment.”
Americans United for Separation of Church and State
Ultimately, the complaint regarding Richardson-Snell’s alleged religious proselytizing landed in the Washington, D.C. office of Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
Americans United sent a letter to Richardson-Snell and the entire MCC Board of Trustees dated December 12, 2025. The organization cited the incident at the Oct. 13 Peace and Dignity Ceremony, adding: “We understand that this is not the first time that the President has made such comments in her official capacity, including making such comments directly to students.”
The letter continued: “Allowing any College employee – but especially an employee as high profile as the President – to use their positions to religiously proselytize students, employees, or visitors conveys disrespect for the beliefs of the community and sends the message that those who do not practice the officially favored faith are unwelcome outsiders who do not belong.”
The four-page letter, signed by Staff Attorney Ian Smith, cited numerous court cases in support of its position.
Glenn Simmington, a local attorney and self-described “constitutional scholar,” told East Village Magazine, “As a matter of free exercise, I don’t think she [Richardson-Snell] gets to say anything she wants as president of Mott Community College.”
“If she’s trying to coerce people into swearing that Jesus is their Lord and Savior and that Satan is going to take over the world … then something needs to be done,” he added. “I just don’t know what it is.”
Paul Jordan, a former member of the MCC faculty, drafted and sent an additional communication to the Board ahead of a Feb. 18 special meeting, which cited examples of MCC Board policies that prohibit proselytizing behavior. For example, he noted Policy 1365 prohibits “comments based on an individual’s … religion,” and Policy 5202 reads, in part, “Discrimination … based on religion … will not be tolerated.”
Controversy dominates recent MCC board meetings
After months of build-up, two recent meetings of the Mott board on Feb. 18 and Feb. 23 were dominated by the church-state controversy and altogether lasted more than 9.5 hours.
In all, 43 members of the public addressed Richardson-Snell’s alleged proselytizing behavior at those meetings. Of those commenters, 21 defended the college president while an equal number did not. One person adopted a neutral position. Snippets of the commentary are as follows:
Defenders:
- Bill Bain, Flushing Township: “It is a very slippery slope when you try to impede free speech or the free expression of religion. That is our God-given right.”
- Katherine Broussard, executive director of a faith-based nonprofit: “For 33 years, this college … has hosted and provided financial support for a religious [Peace and Dignity] ceremony of a single faith and, even though that faith is not my own … I don’t take offense to that.”
- Ruth Patterson, Mt. Morris: “Our Constitution, whether you’re a president or not … she [Richardson-Snell] is still a citizen of the United States … Her asking a question, ‘Are you a Christian?’ is not proselytizing.”
- Miosha Robinson, Flint-based pastor: “But for a committed Christian [Richardson-Snell], faith is not something that can be turned on and turned off depending on the setting … Her faith is not an accessory, it is a foundation.”
- Tiffany Morris, Flint resident: “I don’t believe she [Richardson-Snell] pushed Jesus on anyone. It is her duty to share the light. The light is not to be hid, it is to shine.”
- Adam Morris, Flint-based pastor: “I think we’re living in the end times … I think this board owes her [Richardson-Snell] an apology.”
Critics:
- Bobbie Walton, Davison resident: Walton promised a complaint to the Bar Association, educating the public, and non-support of future millages for the college.
- Glenn Harris, retired MCC faculty member: “Public employees, and certainly those put in leadership and power, cannot promote their religious views on the public dollar. Imagine a Muslim president of a community college who announced a midday call to prayer.”
- Anne Figueroa, former MCC board chair: “From the start of her employment, Ms. Richardson-Snell has stood up in front of you [MCC trustees] in public and recited … some kind of prayer … She continues to do so and you say nothing.”
- Paula Weston, MCC instructor: “As a board you have the obligation to investigate complaints [like those lodged against Richardson-Snell] and do so thoroughly, transparently, and publicly, and … in a timely manner.”
- Elizabeth Jordan: “An appropriate investigation needs to be focused, not on just one incident, but on this larger pattern of alleged conduct.”
- Mara Fulmer, former MCC instructor: “The primary focus of that job [college president] is to promote a welcoming, inclusive environment and respect all faiths, cultures, and belief systems.”
Richardson-Snell responds
Richardson-Snell was not present at the Feb. 18 meeting, but her Feb. 23 response to the allegations was, in part: “I want to make sure that the Indigenous People know that I … strongly denounce the atrocities that were committed unto them … The Christian belief is that every individual has free will … I have no intention of coercing or inducing any others to any faith.”
A fuller account of her response is as follows:
“Any statements that I have made have been reflective purely and only of my own personal beliefs. And in no way do I ever intend or mean to offend anyone. And, in fact, it’s quite the opposite of the reason why I am even here. In fact, during the Peace and Dignity Ceremony which I was honored and graciously accepted that invitation to speak. I want to make sure that the Indigenous People know that I deeply respect … the history and strongly denounce the atrocities that were committed unto them. I also want to say that this was a Peace and Dignity Ceremony and, while I was addressing the participants, I thanked Celia Perez-Booth [and] Wayne Wilson for being with us and for keeping the beautiful tradition alive for 33 years which has been rooted in culture and in courage. I went on to say that this event welcomes all people in our community – just like our college does – people of all races, all ethnicities, all backgrounds, and that it gave us a time for space and reflection. Also, I had the opportunity to say to those at the ceremony that we celebrate unity without uniformity and that we celebrate diversity without fragmentation. I spoke to the participants – in a world that too often separates us into silos of race and religion and language and politics, that this ceremony connects us, connects our history, and our future, and each of us as individuals, and as humans. So, none of my, any references I may make have ever been said with any coercion nor any mandatory participation. I do not induce others to convert. And, in fact, it’s quite the opposite. The Christian belief is that every individual has free will, and in fact, that was part of my comments at the Peace and Dignity Ceremony: free will for all. I spoke that publicly; I repeat it now; I have no intention of coercing or inducing any others to any faith and will state again, every individual has free will to make their own choice or no choice at all … I’ll say it a third time, every person has their own free will to make their own choice or no choice at all. And I also want to reiterate that there are some important questions that I think everyone does need to ponder … Where is the peace? Where is the dignity? Where is the diversity, the inclusion, and justice? So why don’t we all come together to turn our attention to where it belongs which is on our students? … Thank you.”
Back to the business of the college
With the unanimous adoption of a statement that addressed the church-state controversy, Mott’s trustees seemed eager to return to the primary tasks of overseeing an institution of higher learning.
“There are very large issues not being discussed,” said Trustee Reyes. “Start refocusing on the core business of Mott Community College.”
Still, questions linger.
At the Feb. 18 meeting, a further allegation was made that Richardson-Snell repeatedly attempted to contact Mr. Wilson through a lawyer after her comments to him were made public. It also remains unclear why MCC trustees took months to respond to the proselytizing complaints against the college president, given that, per the their own approved statement, an investigation had been conducted “immediately” and a report on the matter was submitted to the board in December.
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Regular meetings of the Mott College Board of Trustees are scheduled to be held at the MCC Event Center starting at 5:30 p.m. on March 23, April 27, May 18, June 22. Recordings of the meetings are available via YouTube.
Editor’s note: Harold C. Ford is a retired public-school educator and has covered education issues for East Village Magazine since 2017. He is also a MCC graduate and presently a Foundation for Mott Community College board member.
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