Michigan 2024 Voter Guide: Michigan State University Board of Trustees

Learn more about the candidates running for Board of Trustees at Michigan State University.

The general election is on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024.

In addition to the presidential, Congressional, and state House races, voters across the state will be casting their votes for who they’d like to serve on the boards of Michigan’s three largest universities.

There are two seats up for reelection on the Michigan State University Board of Trustees in November. University board members oversee financial operations at the institution, and are responsible for the hiring of the university’s president and other key responsibilities — per the state constitution. Board members serve staggered eight-year terms, and serve without compensation.

Democrats Rebecca Bahar-Cook and Thomas Stallworth III are running for open seats on the MSU Board against Republican candidates Mike Balow and Julie Maday. Third-party candidates Janet Sanger and John Paul Sanger of the U.S. Taxpayers Party, Green Party candidate John Anthony La Pietra, and Libertarian candidate Grant T Baker will also be on the ballot.

WDET distributed surveys to university board candidates on the Michigan ballot in November to gain a deeper understanding of what’s motivating them to run. Below, you’ll find candidate bios and their answers to WDET’s questions about their platform and political priorities.

For more information about the November election, visit WDET’s election guide at wdet.org/voterguide.

Responses have been edited for clarity and length.

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Author

  • Jenny Sherman
    Jenny Sherman is 101.9 WDET's Digital Editor. She received her bachelor’s in journalism from Michigan State University and has worked for more than a decade as a reporter and editor for various media outlets throughout metro Detroit.