Just hours before Huntsman Cancer Institute CEO Mary Beckerle was abruptly fired in April, she emailed University of Utah President David Pershing to underscore her worries about future funding for the institute.
“I remain concerned that the process being followed is not consistent with the operating agreement for the [Huntsman] cancer hospital,” Beckerle wrote April 17. “With your help, I hope we can address this going forward.”
At about 3 p.m. that same day, Beckerle opened an email from Pershing, with her termination letter attached. “I am very sorry to have to send this to you electronically,” he wrote, “but I understand you are out of town.