Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer appointed two new members to the Lake Superior State University (LSSU) Board of Trustees on Friday.
Whitmer said that the two appointees, Patricia L. Caruso and Jennifer Lynn-McLeod Tyson, are “deeply familiar” with LSSU and the Sault Ste. Marie area.
“Education is one of my top priorities, and I am confident that Patricia and Jennifer have the unique experience and skills necessary to lead LSSU in the right direction,” Whitmer said in a statement on Friday.
Caruso is an alumna of LSSU and the owner and principal of a corrections consulting and leadership facilitating firm. She is also the lead facilitator at the Warden Peer Interaction Program at the Correctional Management Institute of Texas and the Executive Excellence Program at the National Institute of Corrections. Caruso also served as the director of the Michigan Department of Corrections from 2003 to 2011.
Caruso was appointed for the term beginning on February 7, 2020, and ending January 27, 2028.
“It is an incredible honor to be appointed to serve on the Board of Lake Superior State University,” Caruso said in a statement. “I am a proud graduate of LSSU, and I am excited about the significant work we are doing in so many areas. As a small university we make a real difference in the lives and futures of our students, our faculty, and our community.
Whitmer also appointed Tyson, a tribal councilwoman for the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. She previously served as an Indian education administrator and teacher for Rudyard Area Public Schools and taught Ojibwe at the Ojibwe Charter Public School. Tyson is also a delegate for the United Tribes of Michigan and the National Congress of American Indians, as well as a member of the U.S. Department of Justice Intertribal Working Group for Violence Against Woman. Her term also begins on February 7, 2020, and ends on January 27, 2028.
“One of my greatest joys has been helping students discover their potential and making sure they know that I believe in them,” Tyson said in a statement. “I could not be more pleased to continue this work at LSSU. Sault Ste. Marie is my home now and serving my community and LSSU in this manner allows me to help the Future Leaders of our community, our State, and our Nation. I am grateful to Governor Whitmer for this incredible opportunity.”
Both women currently live in the Sault Ste. Marie area.
The Lake Superior State University Board of Trustees is the governing body of Lake Superior State University and controls the expenditures of the school.
Whitmer’s appointments are subject to the consent of the Senate.
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Jordyn Pair is a reporter with Battleground State News and The Michigan Star. Follow her on Twitter at @JordynPair. Email her at [email protected].
Photo “Lake Superior State University” by Lake Superior State University.
