Ellen M. Bard (January 11, 1949 – October 28, 2009) was an American politician serving as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

member of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

. Bard was born in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

. She graduated from

Pomona College Pomona College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was established in 1887 by a group of Congregationalists who wanted to recreate a "college of the New England type" in Southern California. In 1925, it became ...

in 1971. She also earned a

M.S. A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...

degree from the

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original campu ...

School of Public Communication in 1972 and another

from the

MIT Sloan School of Management The MIT Sloan School of Management (MIT Sloan or Sloan) is the business school of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT Sloan offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degree programs, ...

in 1980. Bard was also a

Marshall Scholar The Marshall Scholarship is a postgraduate scholarship for "intellectually distinguished young Americans ndtheir country's future leaders" to study at any university in the United Kingdom. It is widely considered one of the most prestigious sc ...

. She was elected to represent Ward 7 on the Abington Township Board of Commissioners in 1990. In 1994, after one term as a Township Commissioner, she was elected to represent the 153rd legislative district in the

. During her tenure there, she has had 17 bills signed into law. During her legislative career, she was known for advocating on behalf of the

Abington School District Abington School District is a medium-sized, suburban, public school district that serves the borough of Rockledge and Abington Township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. The district operates one high school, one middle school, and seven ele ...

and for her work on energy and environmental issues, including her service as Chair of the Task Force on a 21st Century Energy Policy for Pennsylvania. She left her PA House seat to run for Pennsylvania's 13th congressional district, losing the Republican primary to Melissa Brown, who went on to lose to Allyson Schwartz. In May 2009, after her diagnosis with

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of t ...

, she and her husband moved from Jenkintown to

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

to be near their daughter. She died in October 2009.

References

External links

* official PA House profile (archived) * - official Party website (archived) {{DEFAULTSORT:Bard, Ellen 1949 births 2009 deaths Politicians from Minneapolis Republican Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Women state legislators in Pennsylvania MIT Sloan School of Management alumni Boston University College of Communication alumni Deaths from pancreatic cancer Deaths from cancer in California Pomona College alumni 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American women politicians 21st-century American women