Indiana Gov. Mike Braun defended his sudden removal of alumni-elected Indiana University trustees and his contentious picks to replace them.

Donna Spears, one of the members of the IU Board of Trustees who was removed from her position, provided a statement to FOX59/CBS4 about Monday’s developments. That statement is included in full below: For more than 130 years,

Gov. Mike Braun has let go of the three elected members of Indiana University’s Board of Trustees and has already filled the position with his replacements. Donna Spears, Vivian Winston and Jill Burnett were all fired from the board at the start of June.