Harry Lewis, Jr. (born February 1941) is an American politician who served in 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 ...

, representing the 74th District from 2015 until his retirement in 2018.

Early life and education

Lewis was born in February of 1941 in Queens, New York City. As a child, Lewis lived in

Carver Court Carver Court is a historic housing development located at Foundry Street and Brooks Lane near Coatesville in Caln Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania. Built in 1944 in the International Style, Carver Court is important to understanding the ...

. He graduated from

Coatesville Area High School The Coatesville Area High School is a public high school in Caln Township, in central Chester County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is part of the Coatesville Area School District and the school has a Coatesville postal address. The hi ...

in 1959. Lewis earned a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree in health and physical education from

Winston-Salem State University Winston-Salem State University (WSSU) is a historically black public university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina. History Winston-Salem State University was founded as Slater Industrial Academy o ...

in 1963, a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

degree in wellness and fitness from

West Chester State College West Chester University (also known as West Chester, WCU, or WCUPA, and officially as West Chester University of Pennsylvania) is a public research university in and around West Chester, Pennsylvania. The university is accredited by the Middle ...

in 1980, and a Master of Education from Cheyney University of Pennsylvania in 1999.

Career

Lewis worked at

for 36 years eventually becoming the school's principal.

Pennsylvania House of Representatives

Lewis was first elected in

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

to represent the 74th District in the

. He won re-election from

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

, but declined to run again in

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

. During his tenure, Lewis was the only

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

in the Republican caucus.

References

External links

Official Web SitePA House profile
* Living people People from Chester County, Pennsylvania Republican Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives African-American state legislators in Pennsylvania 1941 births 21st-century American politicians 21st-century African-American politicians 20th-century African-American people Black conservatism in the United States {{Pennsylvania-PARepresentative-stub Winston-Salem State University alumni West Chester University alumni Cheyney University of Pennsylvania alumni Politicians from Chester County, Pennsylvania