The Honorable Michael J. Sullivan, among the first recipients of the College's petroleum engineering degree, used his engineering education and training in arenas far removed from the oil patch. After practicing as a Casper business and trial lawyer for 22 years, he embarked on a political career that resulted in his election as two-term Governor of Wyoming and appointment as United States Ambassador to Ireland. Sullivan won the 1986 governor's race in his first attempt at political office. He was re-elected in 1990. The Honorable Michael J. Sullivan In addition to chairing the Western Governor's Association and serving on the Executive Board of the National Governor's Association, Sullivan represented Wyoming and served as Chair of the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission. In 1995 Sullivan returned to private practice in Casper and in 1996 spent a semester as a Fellow of the Institute of Politics at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. President Bill Clinton named Mike Sullivan as United States Ambassador to Ireland in 1998. After serving in Ireland for 2 ½ years under both the Clinton and Bush administrations, Sullivan returned to Wyoming and the practice of law.
