The Wayne State University Board of Governors re-elected Tina Abbott and Debbie Dingell to one-year terms as the board's chair and vice chair, respectively, at their Feb. 1 meeting.

Gov. Abbott is completing an eight-year term that runs through 2012, and Gov. Dingell's eight-year term runs through 2014.

Gov. Abbott, a resident of Brownstown, Mich., served as secretary-treasurer of the Michigan AFL-CIO from 1999 until her retirement in 2011. She was elected by the AFL-CIO membership to that position during four consecutive convention elections over the 12-year period. She is vice chair of the Michigan Democratic Party and a member of the Democratic National Committee.

Gov. Abbott has been an important union leader in Michigan for several decades, actively promoting community action and awareness, equality, and civil rights. She is chairperson of the Labor Constituency Council of Michigan, a lifetime member of the NAACP and co-founder of the Ironing Board Brigade.

She is a graduate of the Wayne State University Labor School and Wayne County Community College.

Gov. Dingell is president of D2 Strategies and chair of the Manufacturing Initiative of the American Automotive Policy Council (AAPC). She is an active civic and community leader in both Michigan and Washington, D.C., and also recognized as a national political strategist. Prior to becoming chair of the AAPC Manufacturing Initiative, Gov. Dingell was a senior executive at GM and headed the General Motors Foundation and Public Affairs.

A respected bipartisan voice, she is a contributor to the Fox News Channel and MSNBC, and co-hosts "Am I Right" on Detroit Public Television. Gov. Dingell also is a regular roundtable panel participant on WDIV's "Flashpoint" as well as on several other programs in Michigan and Washington, D.C.

Gov. Dingell is a member of the Democratic National Committee and has chaired numerous political campaigns. She heads several boards, initiatives and committees and sits on many cultural, health, social services, and civic boards in both Michigan and Washington, D.C. She was named by Washingtonian magazine as one of Washington, D.C.'s 100 most influential women for 2011 and has appeared on the Crain's Detroit Business list of the 100 most influential women in Michigan.

Rick Nork, of Northville, Mich., and Julie H. Miller, of Oak Park, Mich., both were elected to one-year terms as 2012 board officers.

Nork, re-elected treasurer of the board, has been an administrative officer to the Board of Governors since 2011. He is vice president for finance and business operations, treasurer, and chief financial officer at Wayne State University.

Miller was re-elected secretary to the board. She has been an administrative officer to the Board of Governors since 2001. Miller also is secretary of the university and senior executive assistant to the president.

Wayne State University's Board of Governors is one of three university governing bodies in Michigan (along with the University of Michigan and Michigan State University) that has constitutional independence. Its members, who serve eight-year terms, are elected by voters throughout Michigan.

Wayne State University is a premier urban research institution offering more than 400 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to nearly 32,000 students.