WMU Trustee Miller elected to WMU Cooley Law board

KALAMAZOO, Mich.—Western Michigan University Trustee Kenneth V. Miller is one of two people recently elected to four-year terms on the board of directors of the WMU Thomas M. Cooley Law School.

Miller, a Kalamazoo businessman who serves as vice chair of the WMU Board of Trustees, was elected to the Cooley board along with Richard F. Suhrheinrich, senior judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and former president of the Detroit College of Law.

"I am honored that Judge Suhrheinrich and Mr. Miller have agreed to join our board of directors," said WMU-Cooley Law School President and Dean Don LeDuc. "They have distinguished themselves in the legal profession, business and community service. Our students will benefit from their decades of higher education leadership and their long association with our law school. I warmly welcome them to the board of WMU-Cooley Law School."

Kenneth Miller

Miller earned both a bachelor's degree and an MBA from WMU as well as a J.D. from WMU Cooley Law School. He is a principal of Havirco, a Kalamazoo investment management firm. He is also owner and CEO of the Millennium Restaurant Group LLC, which owns and operates such southwest Michigan establishments as Martell's Restaurant and Tavern (formerly the Black Swan), Epic Bistro, The Wine Loft, The Union, Panini Express, Fieldstone Grill, CityScape Events Center, Millennium Catering and The Idler. He is cofounder, director and chairman of the Kalamazoo region of Mercantile Bank.

Miller's experience in higher education is extensive. First appointed to the WMU board by Michigan Gov. John Engler, he was later reappointed by Gov. Rick Snyder. He is also a current member and past chairman of the WMU Haworth College of Business Advisory Council. He further has served as trustee and chairman of the Kalamazoo Valley Community College Foundation.

Following private law practice, Miller was cofounder, president and CEO of Radio Associates Group, an owner of radio broadcast properties in Michigan, California, and Nevada. He also cofounded AvTech Laboratories Inc., a pharmaceutical products testing laboratory in Kalamazoo, and TEAM Industries Inc., a Grand Rapids- and Virginia-based manufacturer of polystyrene construction products. In addition, he has been a corporate director of Biomet Inc., a manufacturer of orthopedic and surgical products in Warsaw, Indiana.

Miller is a director and chairman of the board of directors of the Michigan Restaurant Association, is trustee of the Havirmill Foundation, is past president and board member of the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra, and is former chair of Downtown Tomorrow Inc. Board of Directors. He has received the Distinguished Alumni Award from WMU and the Red Rose Award for exceptional community service from the Kalamazoo Rotary Club.

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