President Irvin D. Reid will welcome guests for the Swearing-In ceremony for newly elected members of the Board of Governors, Paul Massaron and Jacquelin Washington, Thursday, Jan. 18. The event, which is open to the public, will begin at 5 p.m. in the McGregor Memorial Conference Center on Wayne State's campus.

Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Barry Howard will administer the oath of office to Massaron. U.S. District Court Judge Denise Page Hood, of the Eastern District of Michigan, will administer the oath to Washington.

Governors Massaron and Washington elected to eight-year terms in the November 2000 statewide election. They succeed last year's board chairman Edgar Scribner and member Denise Lewis.

WSU's Board of Governors is one of three university governing bodies in Michigan (including the University of Michigan and Michigan State University) that has constitutional independence. Its eight elected members are picked by voters throughout Michigan and are elected to eight-year terms.

The constitutional independence of the boards protects the members from political interference. Selection by the voters in statewide elections assures that the universities remain responsible to the public at large.

For more information, contact Robert Wartner: Office of Public Relations, 3222 Faculty Administration Building, Wayne State University. Telephone (313) 577-2150. E-mail: rwartner@dmac.wayne.edu. Fax: (313) 577-8154.