Ramsey was credited with raising academic standards and boosting the school from a commuter campus to a distinguished research institution. [...] he came under increasing fire for embezzlement scandals and a string of other embarrassments, including an FBI investigation of top university officials for alleged misuse of federal money and an NCAA investigation into whether a university employee paid women to strip and have sex with basketball players. [...] in October, an escort named Katina Powell released the book "Breaking Cardinal Rules" that alleged a basketball team employee hired her and other dancers to entertain players and recruits at sex parties. Dozens of professors signed a letter to him complaining about the "drumbeat of crises" and some trustees attempted a no-confidence vote to have him ousted in the spring. Ramsey wrote the governor a letter offering to tender his resignation to the newly appointed board, launching a bumpy series of meetings that led to his eventual ouster late Wednesday. "[...] it was just the decision on both sides, what everyone thought was best," Bridgeman said of the final resolution. Democratic state Attorney General Andy Beshear is challenging Bevin's authority to disband the school's former board and appoint a new one, saying the reorganization was illegal.