Renee Knake was appointed to the Michigan State University Board of Trustees by Governor Whitmer in December 2019 to complete the term vacated by Nancy Schlichting. Knake currently serves as a professor of law at the University of Houston Law Center and as the Joanne and Larry Doherty Chair in Legal Ethics.
“I actually got my start as an academic here in East Lansing,” says Knake. “I spent a decade on the faculty at the MSU College of Law. That was after graduating from the University of Chicago Law School, practicing law for a few years, both in private practice and government work, and then realizing what I wanted to do most was become a law professor. I'll always be grateful for that start.
“in 2016, I transitioned to a position at the University of Houston, a wonderful opportunity that I think came up, in part, because of the great beginnings I had here at Michigan State. At the same time, I was raising kids and as they were getting older, we weren't really sure at first whether they would transition to join me in Texas full-time. What we've decided is best for our family is for our children to stay in East Lansing and continue to be raised here.
“And it's part of why I care so much about the university. It's where I got my start as an academic. East Lansing, because of the Michigan State community, is a wonderful place to raise your children.”
Knake is an internationally recognized expert on legal ethics. What does that mean, and how will that skill set help you steward MSU?
“I always approach any situation from the perspective of being trained as a lawyer. And I think that is useful in any setting, but perhaps, especially the setting that the board finds itself in now. How the board will go forward on the question of the investigation that the attorney general has been conducting regarding the Nassar abuse and the release of 6,000 some documents is an immediate concern for me.
“My training and perspective I think also gives me, not only just as a lawyer but as an academic, a broader perspective of what the role of a university is and especially what is the role of a land grant institution, in educating students for the 21st century. It's that combination of background and my legal ethics work from a lawyering perspective, but also my legal ethics work as a member of an academic community.”
What are some of your short-term goals as a trustee of Michigan State University?
“One of my most important goals is learning everything I can about the university that I didn't already know. Absolutely spending a decade here as a faculty member, I learned a lot, but that was really just in the context of the law college. And there's so much more going on in this campus. As a community member here, raising my children on this campus, they learned to walk at the Spartan Marching Band practices. As toddlers, they fed the ducks on the Red Cedar River, they went to the child development lab for preschool. I learned a lot about the university from that perspective, too. But there's just so much more.
“And so, an immediate priority for me and something that I've already begun doing, is just learning more about the campus very broadly. Another priority for me, is helping the board move forward on the concerns that are ongoing from the survivor community, from the attorney general, from the broader Michigan State community. How do we learn the lessons that need to be learned from the Nassar abuse and the fallout and apply those going forward to make sure that something like that never happens again?
“We need to address the ongoing sexual misconduct that's happening on this campus. We've seen in the most recent survey, which I commend the administration for making it public and transparent, what we can do to make Michigan State a leader for all colleges and universities. The concerns about safety on campus are not unique here, but I see Michigan State as having a unique opportunity to learn from really difficult lessons, and hopefully, not only bring this campus community forward to be a safer place for everyone, but also, to do so for institutions of higher education across the country.”
What about some of your long-term goals?
“First, having the history of being a land grant institution, which from the time that President Abraham Lincoln signed the legislation into being to create a university like this, MSU was meant to expand educational opportunities very broadly. And that's something that you see today, both in terms of the diversity of who our student body is, but also, the wide range of things that one can study coming onto this campus.
“Another strength I see that relates to my long-term goals, is the incredible community of loyal alumni. No matter where I go in the world, and I've traveled the globe presenting my research as a scholar, everywhere I go, there is a connection to someone who has very strong ties to Michigan State. And at a time where many institutions of higher education are having to ask very difficult questions about budget and about pedagogy, do we put more courses online? Do we try to target different demographics or groups? How do we compete with the various pressures related to economics and technological change in the 21st century?
I see an institution like Michigan State really uniquely poised to address those challenges, both because of our historical legacy, and also, because of having such a wide sweeping alumni base that spans the globe. And so for me, a long-term goal for Michigan State would see this being a campus that will continue to grow and thrive as a community where students come here not just to develop a specialized expertise so that they could go on for their chosen career or occupation, but also, so that they come together and experience life with people they've never met before, different cultures, different backgrounds, and live together in a community preparing them to then go on to wherever they are next and not just have a professional expertise, but also, understand what it means to be a citizen, a member of a community filled with people that have all kinds of different views and all kinds of different perspectives on how we move forward.
“So, I want to see Michigan State be an institution that continues to grow in that way. And so, a long-term priority is certainly anything that furthers that. And one of the big things I think relates to the short-term priorities we already talked about, making this campus as safe and welcoming as possible.”
How has the law profession evolved and what kind of a legal profession are you sending students out into? What are their challenges and opportunities?
“One of the biggest challenges for legal education today is making sure that our students are prepared to deliver legal services in the way the public needs them. And so part of that has to do with affordability and legal services that the public can afford that also match what it costs to go to law school. I think it also has to do with education about what lawyers can do.
“One of the main reasons why individuals and individual households that face legal problems don't use lawyers is they don't actually recognize that they have a problem a lawyer could help solve. That's an information gap that I have studied, researched, and written about extensively. How can we make legal services more accessible, affordable, and widely adopted by the greater community?
“And then I think legal education is not immune to any of the other pressures that various professional schools are facing right now with respect to increased competition and the changes that we see in terms of technology in disrupting some of the legal jobs that some of us that might've graduated a few years ago held. For example, as a young associate, I did a lot of document review that involved boxes of documents and a warehouse and yellow legal pads. And that was very time consuming. And a lot of that can now be done through technology tools.
“Because those kinds of jobs have been disrupted, though, I don't think it in any way suggests that we don't have a need for lawyers. In fact, I think the need for someone who has a strong legal education, who understands the Constitution in this country, who understands the laws as they should be applied and how to reform them when needed, who understands how to go out and see an injustice and if there isn't a legal remedy, understands how to advocate for change. Those are all things that law students learn, and we need more people learning about those things. So, I'm very optimistic about the market for legal education.”
Knake says it’s an honor to server on the MSU Board of Trustees.
“I am so grateful to Gov. Whitmer for the opportunity because it gives me a chance to take on a role of volunteer service and give back to a community that I care about very deeply, in part, because it is where I got my start as an academic. Spending a decade at the law school here set me up for many other professional opportunities. I will always be indebted to Michigan State for that.
“MSU is a place where my children have grown up, and I want them to continue to think of this campus as their home and to see it thrive. It's not very often that one gets a chance to give back in such a tangible way to an institution that has given so much, both personally and professionally. I'm quite humbled and honored to be able to do that over the next few years.”
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