Garritt E. Roelofs (June 6, 1900 – November 21, 1976) was an American educator, newspaper founder, and politician.

Early life and education

Garritt E. Roelofs was born to parents Evert Jans Roelofs and Jessie de Vries on June 6, 1900. Both of his parents were of Dutch descent. After attending country school near his hometown of Prinsburg, Minnesota, Roelofs moved to

Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the List of municipalities in Mi ...

, to further his education at Calvin Preparatory School and

Calvin College Calvin University, formerly Calvin College, is a private Christian university in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Founded in 1876, Calvin University is an educational institution of the Christian Reformed Church and stands in the Reformed (Calvinist) ...

, graduating in 1918 and 1921, respectively. In 1919, Roelofs was a student at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

, and during 1922, he was enrolled at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

Career in education and media

Roelofs began his career in education by serving for two years as a principal at a Christian grammar school in

Edgerton, Minnesota Edgerton is a city in Pipestone County, Minnesota, United States, located along the Rock River. The population was 1,189 at the 2010 census. History Edgerton was platted in 1879, and named for Alonzo J. Edgerton, a Minnesota politician. A po ...

. He then taught English literature at a Christian school in Holland, Michigan, for one year, before moving to

Western Academy Hyndland Secondary School is a non-denominational state comprehensive school in the Hyndland area of Glasgow, Scotland. The school provides secondary education for children from the local area, although there are many children from other areas ...

in Hull, Iowa, for the next eight years. For the last four years of his tenure at Western, Roelofs was also principal of the school. In 1930, Roelofs founded the ''Sioux Center News'', and served as the newspaper's editor and publisher.

Public service career

Roelofs served a single four-year term on the

Iowa Senate The Iowa Senate is the upper house of the Iowa General Assembly, United States. There are 50 seats in the Iowa Senate, representing 50 single-member districts across the state of Iowa with populations of approximately 60,927 per constituency, . ...

for District 49 from January 9, 1933, to January 10, 1937. During his state legislative tenure, Roelofs was affiliated with the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

. After stepping down from the state senate, Roelofs became the first director of the Iowa State Unemployment Compensation Commission, which later became known as the State Employment Security Service. From 1938, Roelofs worked for the

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, ...

as North Central Regional Information Officer. In 1943, he joined the

Office of Price Administration The Office of Price Administration (OPA) was established within the Office for Emergency Management of the United States government by Executive Order 8875 on August 28, 1941. The functions of the OPA were originally to control money (price contr ...

as an adviser for agricultural rationing and pricing policies. During the

occupation of Japan Japan was occupied and administered by the victorious Allies of World War II from the 1945 surrender of the Empire of Japan at the end of the war until the Treaty of San Francisco took effect in 1952. The occupation, led by the United States wi ...

following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Roelofs was employed for four years by

Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American military leader who served as General of the Army for the United States, as well as a field marshal to the Philippine Army. He had served with distinction in World War I, was C ...

's staff as a civilian consultant specializing in natural resources. Roelofs returned to Japan in 1952 as a public affairs officer in the

Embassy of the United States, Tokyo The Embassy of the United States in Tokyo (駐日アメリカ合衆国大使館 ''Chū Ni~Tsu Amerikagasshūkoku taishikan'') represents the United States in Tokyo, Japan. Along with consulates in Osaka, Nagoya, Sapporo, Fukuoka, Fukuoka, Fukuok ...

. After leaving public service, Roelofs visited India as a member of the

Rockefeller Foundation The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The second-oldest major philanthropic institution in America, after the Carneg ...

, and went to Burma while affiliated with Robert R. Nathan Associates. Roelofs was hired by the

United States Agency for International Development The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 bi ...

in 1960 and sent on a two-year tour of Colombia. After returning to the United States and visiting the Netherlands, Roelofs spent over three years in Uganda.

Later life and legacy

Roelofs retired in 1968, and settled in

Washington, D. C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

for two years, before deciding to return to Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1970. He died of a heart ailment at home in Grand Rapids on November 21, 1976. A collection of his papers are held by Calvin University.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roelofs, Garritt 1900 births 1976 deaths 20th-century American educators 20th-century American legislators People from Grand Rapids, Michigan People from Kandiyohi County, Minnesota People from Sioux Center, Iowa People from Hull, Iowa Schoolteachers from Michigan Schoolteachers from Iowa Schoolteachers from Minnesota Calvin University alumni University of Michigan alumni University of Minnesota alumni American school principals Editors of Iowa newspapers 20th-century American newspaper founders Republican Party Iowa state senators American politicians of Dutch descent United States Department of Agriculture officials People of the United States Agency for International Development Rockefeller Foundation people American expatriates in Japan American expatriates in Uganda American expatriates in Colombia American expatriates in India American expatriates in the Netherlands American expatriates in Myanmar