Can Dems Make Interlochen, Alleged Sexual Abuse Issue In Gov Race?

(Source: MIRS.news, Published 08/17/2026) Rep. Penelope Tsernoglou (D-East Lansing) wasted little time turning Jay DeBoyer (R-Clay)'s selection as the Republican lieutenant governor nominee into another front in their months-long fight over allegations of sexual abuse at the Interlochen Center for the Arts.

Tsernoglou, whom DeBoyer and the Speaker removed from the House Oversight Committee in May, criticized him Thursday for refusing her requests to hold hearings into the allegations and the Northern Michigan school's historical ties to Jeffrey Epstein.

"I'm deeply saddened that someone who would silence their voices would be selected for such an important job," Tsernoglou told MIRS.

Epstein, the financier who died in 2019, became infamous around the world for reportedly using his wealth and relationships to sexually abuse and traffic young girls. He was also an alumnus and donor to the school in northwestern Michigan, which started an external investigation about two years ago into reports of sexual abuse.

The external report documented roughly 70 allegations of sexual abuse by nearly 50 adults who were hired or affiliated with the school from the '50s to the 2010s.

Tsernoglou has spent the year putting pressure on DeBoyer to use the House Oversight Committee to hold a hearing on the school and allegations. She's called on House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Richland Township) and other Republican leaders to take up a resolution to create a select committee that would be exclusively dedicated to investigating the situation and the Epstein ties.

In May, DeBoyer and Hall removed Tsernoglou from the oversight panel.

Republicans accused Tsernoglou of using her oversight position for "political gotcha" moments and cited, among other things, a contentious interaction with Rep. Jason Woolford (R-Howell), chair of the Oversight subcommittee on state and local public assistance programs.

When informed of Tsernoglou making the media rounds Thursday morning, after news broke that U.S. Rep. John James (R-Shelby Township) chose DeBoyer as his running mate for governor, DeBoyer responded that the issue was a criminal matter.

"My question is, why is Dana Nessel not investigating it? Dana Nessel is the chief law enforcement officer in the state of Michigan. I'll tell you why Dana Nessel is not investigating, because it's nothing more than a political comment in question," DeBoyer said. "I would argue that instead of playing political gotcha, maybe we should focus on things like education in Michigan, the infrastructure in Michigan, law enforcement in Michigan, things that we really should be worried about and be funding instead of criminal investigations."

When asked if not holding an Interlochen hearing could be a political liability for DeBoyer, Republican commentator Dennis Lennox said, "I mean, come on."

He said that DeBoyer's committee exists to conduct oversight of the state government, and isn't a general investigatory body.

"Interlochen is a private institution. To the best of my knowledge, it has received no state appropriations. Other than it being a complete fishing expedition that could potentially interfere with civil investigations that were underway, I don't see where there's a 'there' there," Lennox said.

The Senate Oversight Committee hasn't taken up the issue either, although its chair, Sen. Sam Singh (D-East Lansing) is Tsernoglou's own state senator. The Democratic-controlled Senate Oversight Committee has met once this year, compared to DeBoyer's 12 meetings.

Tsernoglou believes it would be appropriate for a legislative committee to investigate Interlochen, similar to how a House committee generated a 2018 report on Larry Nassar. Nassar was the Michigan State University sports doctor who sexually abused numerous female athletes.

She added that Michigan might need to change its laws due to the Interlochen findings.

"There's various statutes of limitations which prevent abusers and pedophiles from being held accountable, and we need to change those laws, and we are working on that," Tsernoglou said. "Hopefully, we will have people who want to work with us on that, and that is clearly not Chair DeBoyer."

On the MIRS Monday podcast, Tsernoglou said that allegations range from rape to varying forms of sexual assault and harassment.

"The allegations are just really widespread, where teachers, staff members were signing children out of their dormitories, keeping them at their houses for the night, taking them on unsupervised field trips, really just having very, very inappropriate relationships," she said.