Indigenous Law & Policy Center Staff
Matthew L.M. Fletcher, Director, Associate Professor of Law, Member of Grand Traverse Band of Odawa Indians Tribe
Matthew L.M. Fletcher is an Assistant Professor at Michigan State University College of Law and Director of the Indigenous Law and Policy Center. He teaches American Indian law courses and Constitutional Law I. He also sits as an appellate judge for the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians, the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, and the Hoopa Valley Tribe, and is a consultant to the Seneca Nation of Indians Court of Appeals. In the summer of 2005, he was the Indian Law instructor at the American Indian Law Center’s Pre-Law Summer Institute and will serve as co-chair of the Federal Bar Association’s Annual Indian Law Conference in Albuquerque from 2006-2008.
Professor Fletcher graduated from the University of Michigan Law School in 1997 and the University of Michigan in 1994. He is admitted to practice in Michigan, Arizona, and Washington. Professor Fletcher is a member of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, located in Peshawbestown, Michigan. He is married to Wenona T. Singel, a member of the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians.
Wenona T. Singel, Associate Director, Associate Professor of Law, Member of Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians
Wenona T. Singel is an Assistant Professor at the Law College as well as the Associate Director of the Indigenous Law and Policy Center. Professor Singel is an Appellate Judge for the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians and a former member of the tribe’s Economic Development Commission. She is Of Council to the law firm of Kanji & Katzen, PLLC, a firm with offices in Ann Arbor and Seattle that specializes in representing tribes in Indian law matters.
Professor Singel graduated from Harvard University in 1995 and Harvard Law School in 1999. She has worked at Dickenson Wright PLLC, Kanji & Katzen PLLC and was an Assistant Professor at University of North Dakota School of Law. She is admitted to practice in Michigan and the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals. Professor Singel is an enrolled member of the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians.
Kathryn E. Fort, Staff Attorney, Adjunct Professor
Kathryn E. Fort is the Staff Attorney and Adjunct Professor for the Indigenous Law and Policy Center at Michigan State University College of Law. She joined the Center in 2005 as the Indigenous Law Fellow. In her role with the Center, she co-teaches an experiential learning class, researches and writes on behalf of Center clients and on topics in federal Indian law and manages administrative aspects of the Center. Ms. Fort has written articles on laches and land claims and the Indian Child Welfare Act. She has recently been published in the George Mason Law Review, and the American Indian Law Review.
Ms. Fort graduated magna cum laude from Michigan State University College of Law with the Certificate in Indigenous Law, and is licensed to practice law in Michigan. Prior to law school, Ms. Fort worked for Congresswoman Lois Capps. 1998 congressional campaign, the Democratic National Committee during the 2000 Presidential race, the National Association of Letter Carriers, and the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee. She received her B.A. in History with honors from Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia.
Rose Petoskey, Program Coordinator, Member of Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians
Rose Petoskey is the Program Coordinator for the Indigenous Law & Policy Center. She is an undergraduate student at Michigan State University majoring in Political theory with a specialization in American Indian Studies. Rose is a member of the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians and is originally from Peshawbestown, MI.