We encourage you to join school board members and administrators from around the state on March 13 to take our message to the Capitol! With the legislature beginning its review of Governor Evers’ budget proposal, it is an ideal time to talk with your local legislators and build relationships and support for your schools.
As part of our morning programming at the Monona Terrace, we are once again fortunate to have a bipartisan panel of legislative leaders speak to attendees on how they see K-12 fitting into the state budget debate. Our legislative panelists for 2019 are:
State Senator Luther Olsen (R-Ripon)
Senator Luther Olsen was elected to the Senate in 2004, after serving in the state Assembly for 10 years. He was born in Berlin, WI in 1951 and has been a lifelong resident of the 14th Senate District.
Senator Olsen also serves on the Executive Committee and Steering Committee for the Education Commission of the States (ECS), previously he served as Vice-Chair of ECS, and formerly served as the Co-Chair of the Education Committee for the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL).
Senator Olsen is a graduate of Berlin High School and received his Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is a past member of the Berlin School Board, where he served as President of the board for 9 years.
Senator Olsen is married, has six children, five grandchildren, and lives in the city of Ripon.
Current Committees:
- Committee on Education (Chair)
- Committee on Finance (Vice-Chair)
- Committee on Natural Resources and Energy (Vice-Chair)
- Committee on Universities, Technical Colleges, Children and Families
- Joint Committee on Finance (Vice-Chair)
- Joint Legislative Council
State Senator Chris Larson (D-Milwaukee)
Senator Chris Larson was born and raised in Milwaukee County. He graduated from Thomas More High School, then attended the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and graduated with a degree in Finance and a minor in Political Science.
Senator Larson was elected to the Wisconsin State Senate on November 2, 2010 after serving on the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors from 2008–10. He has been reelected twice since then and served as Senate Democratic Leader during the 2013-2014 Legislative Session.
Senator Larson resides in Bay View with his wife Jessica and their son Atticus and daughter Stella.
Current Committees:
- Committee on Administrative Rules
- Committee on Agriculture, Revenue and Financial Institutions
- Committee on Education (Ranking Member)
- Committee on Universities, Technical Colleges, Children and Families
- Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules
- Joint Survey Committee on Tax Exemptions
State Representative Robin Vos (R-Rochester), Assembly Speaker
Speaker Robin Vos was first elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly in 2004 after serving as a Racine County Board Supervisor from 1994-2004. He is the 75th Speaker of the Assembly. He was chosen by his Assembly peers for that post in 2013. Rep. Vos previously served as the chair of the Joint Finance Committee.
Born in 1968, Speaker Vos is a lifelong Racine County resident, graduating from Burlington High School in 1986. He attended the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater, where he served as a UW Board of Regents student member from 1989 to 1991. He then graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science and a minor in Public Relations in 1991.
Speaker Vos also serves on several national boards. He is the current President-Elect of the National Conference of State Legislatures and the Vice Chair of the State Legislative Leaders Foundation.
Speaker Vos and his wife, Michelle, live in Rochester.
Current Committees:
- Committee on Assembly Organization (Chair)
- Committee on Employment Relations (Chair)
- Committee on Rules (Vice-Chair)
- Joint Committee on Employment Relations (Co-Chair)
- Joint Committee on Legislative Organization (Co-Chair)
- Joint Legislative Council
State Representative Gordon Hintz (D-Oshkosh), Assembly Minority Leader
Rep. Gordon Hintz was re-elected to his seventh term in the State Assembly for the 2019-2020 Legislative Session. He was appointed as ranking member to the Joint Committee on Finance, before being elected to serve as the Assembly Democratic Leader in September of 2017. Prior to serving in the Legislature, Rep. Hintz worked in government at the federal, state, and local levels.
A native of Oshkosh, Rep. Hintz holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Hamline University and a master’s degree in public affairs from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He also taught American Government at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh from 2005 to 2006.
Rep. Hintz and his wife Liz reside in Oshkosh with their daughter Beatrix.
Current Committees:
- Committee on Assembly Organization
- Committee on Employment Relations
- Committee on Rules
- Joint Committee on Employment Relations
- Joint Committee on Legislative Organization
- Joint Legislative Council
- Joint Survey Committee on Retirement Systems
(Photos and biographical information are from the legislators’ websites)
