NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 21, 2012
CONTACT: Kent Love, 517-432-6959, kent.love@law.msu.edu
U.S. Secretary of Transportation LaHood Swears In Law Professor Singel To Serve On National Board
East Lansing, MI — United States Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood recently swore in Michigan State University College of Law Professor Wenona T. Singel to serve as a member of the Advisory Board of the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (SLSDC).
President Barack Obama nominated Singel, which was unanimously approved by a voice vote of the U.S. Senate in late March 2012. During Singel's time in Washington, D.C., she met President Obama and the First Lady at a White House event for Presidential Appointees and their guests, and attended a joint meeting of the SLSDC Advisory Board and the SLSDC administration.
The SLSDC, a wholly owned government corporation operating within the U.S. Department of Transportation, collaborates with its Canadian counterpart to operate, maintain, and ensure the safety and security of navigational facilities in the Saint Lawrence Seaway. Its five-member advisory board meets quarterly to advise the corporation's administrator on policies involving the operation, development, and effects of the Seaway.
"President Obama's nomination, followed by the U.S. Senate's unanimous consent is well-deserved recognition of Professor Singel's extensive record of public service and dedication to research on major policy issues," said Joan W. Howarth, dean of MSU College of Law.
Singel is an assistant professor of law and the associate director of the Indigenous Law & Policy Center at MSU Law, where she teaches courses in the fields of federal Indian law and natural resources law. She also is the chief appellate justice for the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians and the former chief appellate judge for the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians.
"It's a great privilege to be able to support the Seaway," said Singel. "I'm grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the environmentally sound development and management of the Seaway, whose transportation infrastructure plays a critical role in the Great Lakes and broader U.S. economy."
Prior to joining the faculty at MSU Law, Singel was an assistant professor at the University of North Dakota School of Law and a fellow with the Northern Plains Indian Law Center. She earlier worked in private practice with firms including Kanji & Katzen and Dickinson Wright. She has served as a member of the Economic Development Commission of the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians and as general counsel for the Grand Traverse Resort, a tribally-owned resort in northern Michigan.
Professor Singel is an enrolled member of the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians. She received an A.B. from Harvard College and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.
The Indigenous Law & Policy Center is the heart of the Indigenous Law Program at MSU College of Law. The Center has two goals: to train law students to work in Indian Country, and to provide services to institutional clients such as Indian tribes, tribal courts, and other tribal organizations on a wide variety of legal and policy questions. The Center's "Turtle Talk" blog is a popular and influential source for up-to-the-minute updates and analysis on Indian law and politics. One of the most followed law blogs in the country, Turtle Talk is followed by tribal citizens; indigenous law scholars; and tribal, state, and federal leaders.
Michigan State University College of Law, a leading institution of legal education with a long history of educating practice-ready attorneys, prepares future lawyers to use ethics, ambition, and intellect to solve the world's problems. As one of only a few private law schools affiliated with a major research university, MSU Law offers comprehensive interdisciplinary opportunities combined with a personalized legal education. After 100 years as a private and independent institution, the affiliation with MSU has put the Law College on an upward trajectory of national and international reputation and reach. MSU Law professors are gifted teachers and distinguished scholars, its curriculum is rigorous and challenging, and its facility is equipped with the latest resources—all affirming MSU Law's commitment to educating 21st-century lawyers.
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