Judy Schwank
Judy Schwank | |
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Member of the Pennsylvania Senate from the 11th district | |
Incumbent | |
Assumed office April 5, 2011[1] | |
Preceded by | Michael O'Pake |
Member of the Berks County Board of Commissioners | |
In office January 3, 2000 – January 7, 2008 | |
Preceded by | Anthony Carabello[2] |
Succeeded by | Kevin Barnhardt |
Personal details | |
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse | Jim |
Children | 3 |
Residence | Fleetwood |
Alma mater | Pennsylvania State University Harvard University |
Judith Schwank (born 1951) is an American politician. A Democrat, she was elected to the Pennsylvania Senate from the 11th district in a special election on March 15, 2011, to succeed the late Michael O'Pake.[3] The district includes the city of Reading and most of eastern Berks County.
Education
Schwank attended the Pennsylvania State University, where she earned a B.S. and M.Ed. in agricultural education.[4] She continued her studies at Harvard University, where she completed the Executive Leadership Program through the Institute for Conservation Leadership and the Institute for the Management of Life-Long Education.[5]
Career
Schwank then worked as a Berks County horticultural agent with the Penn State Cooperative Extension for 19 years, during which time she established the Master Gardener Program.[5] In 1991, she became the first female director of the Berks County Cooperative Extension Program, a position she held until 1999.[6]
From 2000 to 2007, Schwank served two terms as an elected Berks County Commissioner.[4] She also served as the Commission chair from 2004 to 2007.[7] ""I always thought Berks County was property-tax central," said state Sen. Judy Schwank, a Democrat whose district is in Berks County." [8] In 2004, she was appointed by Governor Ed Rendell as chair of the Pennsylvania State Planning Board.[7] She later served as President and CEO of 10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania, a statewide non-profit organization that promotes responsible land use and development.[5] In January 2010, she was appointed Dean of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at Delaware Valley College.[7]
Pennsylvania Senate
2011 special election
On December 27, 2010, longtime Democratic State Senator Michael O'Pake died from complications following heart surgery.[6] A special election was announced to fill the remaining two years in O'Pake's four-year term. On January 22, 2011, Schwank was nominated by the Berks County Democratic Committee and subsequently approved by the state committee.[9]
Her Republican opponent was Larry Medaglia, the Berks County register of wills. On March 15, Schwank soundly defeated Medaglia by a margin of 58%-42%.[10] She received 20,124 votes to Medaglia's 14,794.[10]
Committee assignments
- Agriculture & Rural Affairs, Minority Chair [11]
- Aging & Youth[11]
- Appropriations[11]
- Game & Fisheries[11]
- Health & Human Services[11]
References
- ^ "Schwank Sworn in to State Senate". The Reading Eagle. April 5, 2011. Archived from the original on October 7, 2011. Retrieved April 5, 2011.
- ^ Young, Mary E. (November 3, 1999). "Carabello loses out by 276 votes". The Reading Eagle. Archived from the original on November 11, 2022. Retrieved November 27, 2011.
- ^ Young, Mary E. (March 15, 2011). "Schwank wins 11th District state Senate seat". Reading Eagle.
- ^ a b "Ag Ed Alumna Takes Delaware Valley Post". Penn State Ag Science Magazine. Archived from the original on July 20, 2011. Retrieved March 16, 2011.
- ^ a b c "About Judy Schwank". Judy Schwank for State Senate. Archived from the original on February 28, 2011.
- ^ a b Phyrillas, Tony (March 15, 2011). "Schwank captures O'Pake's Senate seat". The Mercury. Archived from the original on March 30, 2012.
- ^ a b c "DelVal appoints new dean for agriculture". Delaware Valley College. January 28, 2010. Archived from the original on February 14, 2011. Retrieved March 16, 2011.
- ^ Reinbrecht, Steve. "Why don't law makers fix property taxes?". bctv.org. Retrieved February 19, 2013.
- ^ Young, Mary E. (January 23, 2011). "It's Schwank vs. Medaglia for state Senate seat". Reading Eagle.
- ^ a b "2011 Special Election for the 11th Senatorial District". Pennsylvania Department of State. Archived from the original on March 14, 2012. Retrieved March 16, 2011.
- ^ a b c d e "Senator Judith L. Schwank". The official website for the Pennsylvania General Assembly. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- State Senator Judy Schwank – official caucus website
- Judy Schwank (D) – official PA Senate website
- Judy Schwank for State Senate – official campaign website
- v
- t
- e
- President of the Senate
- ▌Austin Davis (D)
- President pro tempore
- ▌Kim Ward (R)
- Majority Leader
- ▌Joe Pittman (R)
- Minority Leader
- ▌Jay Costa (D)
- ▌Nikil Saval (D)
- ▌Christine Tartaglione (D)
- ▌Sharif Street (D)
- ▌Art Haywood (D)
- ▌Jimmy Dillon (D)
- ▌Frank Farry (R)
- ▌Vincent Hughes (D)
- ▌Anthony Williams (D)
- ▌John Kane (D)
- ▌Steve Santarsiero (D)
- ▌Judy Schwank (D)
- ▌Maria Collett (D)
- ▌Scott Martin (R)
- ▌Nick Miller (D)
- ▌John DiSanto (R)
- ▌Jarrett Coleman (R)
- ▌Amanda Cappelletti (D)
- ▌Lisa Boscola (D)
- ▌Carolyn Comitta (D)
- ▌Lisa Baker (R)
- ▌Scott Hutchinson (R)
- ▌Marty Flynn (D)
- ▌Gene Yaw (R)
- ▌Tracy Pennycuick (R)
- ▌Cris Dush (R)
- ▌Tim Kearney (D)
- ▌Lynda Schlegel Culver (R)
- ▌Kristin Phillips-Hill (R)
- ▌Dave Argall (R)
- ▌Judy Ward (R)
- ▌Mike Regan (R)
- ▌Pat Stefano (R)
- ▌Doug Mastriano (R)
- ▌Greg Rothman (R)
- ▌Wayne Langerholc (R)
- ▌Ryan Aument (R)
- ▌Devlin Robinson (R)
- ▌Lindsey Williams (D)
- ▌Kim Ward (R)
- ▌Rosemary Brown (R)
- ▌Joe Pittman (R)
- ▌Wayne Fontana (D)
- ▌Jay Costa (D)
- ▌Katie Muth (D)
- ▌Jim Brewster (D)
- ▌Camera Bartolotta (R)
- ▌Elder Vogel (R)
- ▌Chris Gebhard (R)
- ▌Dan Laughlin (R)
- ▌Michele Brooks (R)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9d/Seal_of_the_Senate_of_Pennsylvania.svg/90px-Seal_of_the_Senate_of_Pennsylvania.svg.png)