At the conclusion of the November 6th Michigan general election alumnus Joe Tate (MS/MBA '17) was declared the winner in the 2nd State House District, receiving 73% of the vote over Republican John Palffy. Tate joined SEAS as a dual degree student in the Erb Institute after spending four years as an infantry officer in the United States Marine Corps. During his service in the Marine Corps, he managed several economic development projects with local farmers in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. Tate is interested in the intersection of government and business, specifically how municipal public policy implementation affects its intended stakeholders.

As an economic development professional and Marine Corps veteran, Tate ran for state representative to continue his service to community – a value that was taught to him by his father, a Detroit Fire Fighter and his mother, a public school teacher. “For us to improve the quality of life for our Michigan residents, we must invest in our people and places. This includes everything from our infrastructure systems that provide our drinking water to the school buildings that educate our children. I look forward to taking the value of service to Lansing. I know our challenges are many, but they are far outweighed by the opportunities that are ahead.”

Tate returned to SEAS to deliver inspiring words to graduates in his keynote address at the 2019 SEAS spring Commencement on May 4.