Renee Announces Run to Keep Seat on MSU Board of Trustees 2/22/22

Release Date: Feb. 22, 2022

MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY TRUSTEE RENEE KNAKE JEFFERSON WILL RUN TO KEEP SEAT

Democratic candidate, Renee Knake Jefferson, announces she will run

to keep her seat on the Michigan State University Board of Trustees

EAST LANSING, MI – Today, East Lansing resident and Michigan State University Trustee Renee Knake Jefferson, 48, announced that she will run to keep her seat in the November 2022 election. Jefferson was appointed by Governor Gretchen Whitmer in 2019 to help move the University forward after another trustee resigned in the wake of the Dr. Larry Nassar abuse crisis.

At the time of her appointment, Governor Whitmer announced: “I’m confident that Renee’s professional background and unique skillset is what Michigan State University needs right now.”

“I’m running to continue my work as a champion of change and reform for student success,” said Jefferson. “When Governor Whitmer appointed me in 2019, I rolled up my sleeves and got to work. After other trustees refused to release documents surrounding the Nassar crisis for an independent investigation, I reviewed them - more than 10,000 pages - to ensure accountability. In my first 18 months, at my urging we adopted a new policy to evaluate presidential performance and a code of ethics for trustees. We also worked with the president to replace most of the executive-level administrators from the police chief to the provost. The University is in a better place from these changes, but much work remains.”

Jefferson’s priorities for future transformation at MSU include increased accountability and transparency; improved campus safety and healing; and more affordable tuition, especially for in-state students. “At every Board meeting, I try to bring in the viewpoints of all students, faculty, staff, alumni, and community members. I am dedicated to equity, access, inclusion, and safety for all,” said Jefferson.

Another priority is expanding the University’s impact state-wide. “Michigan State University reaches far beyond the East Lansing campus to all 83 of Michigan’s counties with the MSU Extension Program and other strategic partnerships. I want to see these ties strengthened through the growth of even greater educational and economic opportunities throughout the state,” said Jefferson.

Jefferson, a legal ethics professor, was a member of the Michigan State University law faculty from 2006 to 2016, after practicing as an attorney for several years, including local government service. She has deep ties to the East Lansing community. “My children, now teenagers, learned to walk at Spartan Band practices and while feeding ducks along the Red Cedar River. My husband, Wallace B. Jefferson, the first African American justice and chief justice of the Supreme Court of Texas, is a proud Spartan graduate as is my stepson. We all care deeply about the future of the University and its impact across the entire state. We know the value of education, and the economic growth fueled by an institution like Michigan State. This is why I want to continue my volunteer service as a trustee. Meaningful change and reform is a continuous process, one that I will keep fighting for in my next term.”

The primary election will take place on Tuesday, August 2, 2022. The general election will take place on Tuesday, November 8, 2022. For more information, please visit Renee Jefferson’s campaign website at www.TrustJefferson.com.