Michael D. Graves

Michael Graves (BA ’67, MA ’69) is a Renaissance man. His interests vary wildly, from his career in the courtroom and his expertise in environmental issues to his passion for ballet and pursuit of preparing the perfect cassoulet.

Like many people who find themselves drawn to a wide variety of activities, Graves grew up in a family that embraced higher education. His father, Roy William Graves Jr., taught geology at The University of Tulsa after leaving the U.S. Air Force and working for Chevron. His mother, Kay Graves, served as a secretary to two TU presidents.

Michael Graves was born at Randolph Air Force Base and graduated from high school in Denver. He was enrolled at the University of Colorado Boulder when his father got a new job at TU and plans changed. Graves went on to earn his undergraduate degree in history and political science and graduate degree in international relations and political science from TU.

During college, he was involved in many activities, such as the Kendallabrum yearbook. As a member of the Alpha Tau Omega, he was selected Interfraternity Council’s man of the year. Among his most exciting times at TU was the 61-14 upset of Oklahoma State during the 1964 football season.

“Some of my most enduring TU memories have to do with my participation on the team that represented TU on the GE College Bowl TV quiz game. Dr. Rod Jones was our trainer, and he did a great job preparing us. After he retired, he became a docent at Gilcrease Museum, and I used to see him several times a year. I have the GE College Bowl participation medal in my office, and eventually I plan to give it to the Alumni Association Heritage Committee. Participating in that process gave me a life-long interest in arcane subjects, and since then I am a terror at trivial pursuit,” he said.

“I am a firm believer in the value of an old-fashioned liberal education,” he said. “At The University of Tulsa, I never had a class with more than 24 students. I never had a class that was not taught by a Ph.D.”

Graves opted to pursue his law degree at Washington University in St. Louis, where he was an editor of the law school journal. He then joined the U.S. Naval Reserves and was stationed in Africa along the Red Sea – a fascinating place for a young history buff interested in world affairs.

After returning stateside, Graves accepted a job as a lawyer at the Department of Justice in Washington. He was among a handful of government attorneys handling cases involving pollution and natural resources. In four years, he had five Supreme Court cases and won four of them. The fifth one was dismissed.

Graves entered private practice, specializing in what was then a rapidly growing new field of environmental law, in 1978. Since then, he has made his mark in the legal community, writing prolifically and occasionally serving as an adjunct professor.

Despite all of these experiences, Graves still finds the thought of being a TU Distinguished Alumnus quite humbling. “I was flabbergasted when I heard – thunderstruck, but pleased. It’s such an incredible honor,” he said.

All along, he never lost touch with TU. He has served in several capacities with the Alumni Association, including president, was a member of the Golden Hurricane Club, and is on the Henry Kendall College of Arts & Sciences Board of Visitors. And although his wife, Kathleen Page, is not a University of Tulsa graduate, both of her parents are.

“When I attended TU, it was a commuter college. Almost everyone was from Tulsa,” he said. “What we really wanted was a residential campus like the one we have now. I love to show it off.”