Dr. Antoinette Candia-Bailey emails prior to suicide

UPDATED — 4:24 PM 01/12/2024

KOMU reports that on Friday, Lincoln University President Dr. John B. Moseley was placed on paid administrative leave after facing calls for removal.

Stevie Lawrence II, current provost and vice president of academic affairs, will serve as acting president while a review takes place.

“As a Board, we are committed to make certain the mental health of Lincoln University employees is a priority and that every employee is always treated with dignity and respect,” said Board of Curators President Victor Pasley in a press release.

“The Board has confidence in the leadership team we have at Lincoln, but as we all work together to serve students and the Lincoln University community, this review will fully examine important questions, concerns and gather facts. Dr. Moseley agrees those issues should be examined and has volunteered to go on leave during the review so that it can move forward in a fully independent way.”

LU alumni are still calling for the removal of Moseley using the hashtags #FireMosely on social media.

Below this line, the original story begins.

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Source: Lincoln University / Lincoln Univ.

Dr. Antoinette “Bonnie” Candia-Bailey, Vice President of Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Missouri, took her own life on Jan. 8, 2023, and the school’s president Dr. John Moseley is taking vitriolic backlash for “allegedly” playing a major role in Candia-Bailey’s self-inflicted death. So much so that people are calling for him to resign from his position at the school.

According to new reports in KRGCTV, newly revealed emails sent by Dr. Candia-Bailey on the day she died paint Moseley as a man who caused “harm and mental damage.”

Monica Graham has been one of Candia-Bailey’s closest friends since college and she says that despite always having a smile, upbeat attitude, and willingness to sacrifice for her friends, something in her friend changed after becoming Lincoln’s VP in May 2023.

“I was literally just with her at homecoming and she was like ‘I’m just trying to make it through.’” said Shaunice Hill, another close friend of Candia-Bailey’s. “Her whole demeanor had changed. Yes, she was still smiling, but you could tell that something was off – something was different.”

One of the emails Dr. Bailey sent that fateful day was to the board of curators requesting a Family Medical Leave under the Americans with Disabilities Act. She stated that her depression and anxiety had sent her relationship with Moseley “downhill” and complained about the way she was treated by the board. Dr. Bailey went on to say that she was given a poor evaluation and was “intentionally harassed and bullied” with no professional recourse.

Her final email was one of the most damning. It pointed a finger directly at Moseley as the source of her pain and agony.

In her final email to Moseley on the day of her death, Candia-Bailey also asked for only select members of her sorority to be allowed to collect her things, saying, “Rose Ann can speak with my family from the administration. You are not to have any contact. You’ve caused enough harm and mental damage.”

Rest in peace to Dr. Antoinette “Bonnie” Candia-Bailey. Dr. John Moseley has a whole lot of explaining to do!