Kathy Wilbur, a state government and university insider who mentored many, dies at 70

EAST LANSING — Kathy Wilbur, who led three state departments and helped to lead two Michigan universities, died Sunday at age 70.

Wilbur was a fixture in state government, an elected Michigan State University board member in the mid-1980s and had planned to retire in the new year from her role as senior vice president for government relations for MSU, where she'd worked since 2018.

"When appointed to my current position at MSU, I was honored to serve my alma mater and consider it the capstone of my career in public service,” Wilbur said in announcing her retirement plans. “Educating and empowering our future generations fosters a relentless pursuit of knowledge. When you have the opportunity to work with students, you witness the transformational power a college education has and that is what motivated my long commitment to higher education.”

"Kathy was remarkable and she was so well connected because she treated people fairly and respectfully," said John Engler, the former Michigan governor who appointed Wilbur to three state agencies. "She was an honest broker. People, regardless of party affiliation, knew they could talk to her."

Wilbur was chief of staff for state Sen. Bill Sederberg in the mid-1980s, where her work caught the attention of Engler, then a state senator contemplating a run for governor.

Wilbur's job at MSU — like similar roles at Central Michigan University, where she spent 16 years, including a stint as interim president — was to get state funding and advocate for the universities in the Capitol and beyond.

Wilbur was both competitive and collaborative, which is a rare combination at her level, said Doug Skrzyniarz, vice president of government relations for Community Health Systems. When Skrzyniarz was a lobbyist for Wayne State University and Wilbur for CMU, he came to her with an idea to help boost the number of physicians in Michigan.

CMU, and Wilbur, could have seen it as an intrusion since CMU had a new medical school, but Wilbur saw a chance to increase the number of physicians in underserved areas of Michigan and didn't care about who got the credit, Skrzyniarz said.

The collaboration turned into the MIDOCS program, which helps to boost physicians in underserved areas of the state.

"She saw the outcome, a way to get more primary care doctors in the state, and knew it doesn't matter who gets credit or if this was owned by CMU exclusively," Skrzyniarz said. "Because of her and her knowledge and ability to problem solve and gather resources and people, this kind of thing happened and not just this one."

She had a hand in many of MSU's major developments and projects in recent years, said Engler, who also was a former interim MSU president.

The crowning achievement of her work may be the many, many people she mentored in and around state government and state universities, he said.

She was director of three state departments: Licensing and regulation, commerce, and consumer and industry services.

It was a first for a woman in Michigan and Engler said he wasn't sure if a man had ever led three different departments.

Wilbur was inducted into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame in 2007.

She was chair of the board of Michigan Future Inc., a nonprofit think tank devoted to helping Michigan succeed in a knowledge-driven economy.

Wilbur is survived by her husband and four sons.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said, in a statement, Wilber was dedicated to moving Michigan forward.

"Her legacy will endure at Central Michigan University and Michigan State University, two places where she delivered lasting, positive changes."

U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Lansing, said in a statement that Wilbur was her first and last call for anything related to MSU.

"A dedicated alumna, Kathy's steady hand helped MSU weather good times and bad, all driven by an absolute love for the school and the community around it."

Wilbur's personality and work led her to join the board, and later trustees, of the Citizens Research Council, where she helped to recruit other board members and support non-partisan public policy research, said Eric Lupher, president of the council, in a statement.

He said Wilbur was a mentor to many women in a field that had too often been dominated by men.

Contact Mike Ellis at mellis@lsj.com or 517-267-0415

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Kathy Wilbur dies at 70. She led state departments and helped MSU, CMU