At an October 17, 2008, dinner hosted by the Petersens at the president’s residence to honor the accomplishments of members of the UT Alliance of Women Philanthropists, Carol Petersen initiated a confrontation with alliance chair Laura Morris.
As Petersen and Morris were thanking guests for attending, Petersen told Morris that she disapproved of a fund-raising idea Morris had earlier proposed, called her “too Knoxville-centric,” and questioned her leadership. Morris was in tears by the end of the conversation and resigned as chair three days later, making clear in her letter of resignation that it was a direct result of Carol Petersen’s actions.
On November 7 Jim Murphy, vice chair of the UT Board of Trustees, wrote President Petersen, following several conversations with him, stating: “As an initial response to this situation, we have agreed that you and Carol will develop a plan to provide me with some assurance that instances like this will not happen in the future. We have also agreed that until I receive and approve this plan, Carol will avoid any contact with university donors and staff (other than staff at the residence).”