Party: Republican

Background: Incumbent Romney is a Detroit-area lawyer with Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn LLP. He graduated from MSU in 1966 with a degree in economics and received his law degree from Harvard in 1969. He is the son of former Michigan Gov. George Romney and the brother of former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. He was appointed to the board in 2000. He ran for re-election that same year and was voted in for his first full term on the board in January 2001.

Web site: www.romneyformsu.com

Lisa Bouchard

Age: 48

Party: Republican

Background: Bouchard, a Birmingham resident, is the former president and CEO of Dickson Associates Group. She graduated from MSU in 1982 with a degree in accounting. Under her leadership, Dickson Associates’ revenue grew from $500,000 annually to more than $20 million annually. She said she wants to create more partnerships between MSU and local businesses to increase revenue for the school and turn around the state’s economy.

Web site: www.lisabouchard.com

Dianne Byrum

Age: 54

Party: Democrat

Background: Byrum is a former Democratic House leader in the Michigan House of Representatives. She graduated from MSU in 1974 with a degree in public affairs management. She served in the House from 1991-94 and from 1993-2006. From 1995-2002, she served in the state Senate. Byrum is the spokesperson for the Michigan Coalition for Compassionate Care, an advocacy group for Proposal 1, which would legalize medical marijuana in Michigan.

Web site: None

Diann Woodard

Age: 57

Party: Democrat

Background: Woodard has experience as a teacher in Detroit. She graduated from MSU in 1973 with an English degree. She is the executive vice president of the American Federation of School Administrators. Woodard has stressed the importance of college and high school administrators working together to ensure high school students come to college prepared for the workload in an attempt to increase graduation rates.

Web site: None

Therese Marie Storm

Party: Green

Robert Gale

Party: U.S. Taxpayers

Crystal Van Sickle

Party: U.S. Taxpayers

David A. Brown

Party: Libertarian

Joseph Rosenquist

Party: Libertarian