East Lansing, Michigan - Four miles away, Rachael Denhollander walked into the Ingrahan County Courthouse in downtown Lansing to attend the next day’s sentence hearing for a continuous sexual predator Larry Nassar.

Denhollander will be one of more than 150 survivors to provide impact statements.

Not in court that day: Anyone from Michigan State University, Nassar spent more than two decades working as a doctor in the Department of Sports Medicine, abused patients almost every day except for their behavior with the United States gymnastics.

The lack of school representation—for example, then-President Lou Anna K. Simon or anyone on the board—has hint at how MSU views the case. (Simon will be part of a day in nearly two weeks of lawsuits after media fanaticism.)

The school seems to look at the Naxal case in a more straightforward way, rather than through the actions of women who shed tears but through the truth.

Then it was Thursday morning, when Denhollander, then-seated with survivors Sterling Riethman and Trinea Gonczar, sat next to Michigan State University (MSU) president Kevin Guskiewicz and announced the establishment of a new Cooperation Advisory Committee to help guide agency assessments and responsive assessments of sexual violence.

The adversarial relationship between schools and survivors has long been suddenly aligned as they collectively began to evaluate policy, culture and institutional structures to make MSU and the community safer.

"For me, it's a very powerful thing to work with," Dan Holland said.

Denhollander, Riethman and Gonczar first introduced the program to MSU in 2018, but the trustees at the time even refused to vote on it, let alone implement it. Although the school changed many policies alone, it reached a box office of over $500 million in the case and provided many public apology, and it was not possible to get in touch again until Guskivic was hired 14 months ago.

Instead of seeing the Naxal case as old news, he seeks survivors to assess what can still be done.

"I listened," Guskivic said. "One thing that I'm very interested in is how the institution supports and responds to the survivor community. It's a game changer at Michigan State University because we've learned and moved forward from the past... It's a lot better than it was six to seven years ago or 12 years ago, but there's always room for improvement."

It was a stark juxtaposition of the tense and exciting days of Naxal’s sentencing hearing. Judge Rosemarie E. Aquilina invited all and all victims to address the court.

That's not to say how long she's going to sentence Nassar -- the 61-year-old has been imprisoned in a federal child pornography conviction that lasts until 2068. Aquilina will then add 175 years to state charges. He wasn't, nor was he, never, ever.

Each victim has the opportunity to tell their stories, speak directly to Nassar, and find measures for peace and goal through the entire process. This is part of the curriculum for group therapy, part of the teaching moment and part of the warning calls on individuals and institutions to be placed and even protected during the reign of terror through hollow policies and blind eyes.

Places like MSU.

"The world needs to hear this," Aquilina said.

The case caught a gentle eye after the unquestioned march of women forming pain and power, quickly exploded the American consciousness. They talk about abuse. anger. Lost innocence. Eternal radiation.

And determination, hope, strength, recovery.

The gold medal gymnast talked about the goals targeting the national camp and the Olympics. Locals describe being driven innocently to the doctor's place - usually because they are young because they are young - injured or flipped injuries are treated during their favorite after-school activities.

Videos from far to Asia. The fraternity reads statements for sisters who cannot be managed. The husband stood behind his wife, shaking his shoulders with both hands. Friends hug. Anger arises. Sorrow lingers everything.

Mother Donna Markham talked about her daughter Chelsea’s suicide. "It all started with him," she admitted. One daughter, Kyle Stephens, spoke of her father's suicide, who couldn't get rid of what she called "shame and self-loathing" because she first revealed what happened a few years ago.

Sitting in the court, day after day, the nightmare that follows will be deeply moved.

However, Michigan is hardly found. The hearing was only a few minutes away from campus, but the disagreement seemed to be large, further angering the victims.

It has continued for many years. Schools seek meaningful reforms, but keep survivors apart. At one time, a survivor, Kaylee Lorincz, then 18, but Nassar, who was only 13, was victimized, and he met John Engler, then president of Interim MSU on campus. She asked to speak. "My hope is that if he does meet a survivor, he will be more sympathetic," Lorrins said at a 2018 board meeting. Instead, Engler tried to negotiate with her, she said. "Mr. Engler... looked straight at me and asked, 'Now, if I wrote you a check of $250,000, would you accept it?' When I explained that it had nothing to do with my money and I just wanted to help, he said, "Okay, give me a number." ”

For MSU, that's all this - this number will result in a closure, or at least fade into public memories. It's always about the school; it's not enough for everyone else. Denhollander and Riethman said there was nothing new about what they announced in their 2018 content on Thursday—just new leadership.

"This kind of institutional courage is rare," Dannoland said.

Finally, survivors are welcomed on the table. Even better, they are seen more than just what happened to them – everyone is now an expert and professional in the field.

"We're getting stronger together," Gonza noted.

The consultation panel work has just begun. Guskiewicz pointed out that this is not a survey, but an assessment. What will be discovered and what can be improved remains to be seen.

However, it has been a new day over the years, with a new relationship with Michigan State and Naxal survivors.

"It's never too late to do the right thing," Dan Holland said.