Jill Katherine Underly (' Semko; born August 2, 1977) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

educator and school system administrator. She is the Superintendent of Public Instruction of the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

, elected in the 2021 Spring general election.

Biography

Jill Underly grew up in northwest

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

, outside

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. She earned her

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

from

Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, or simply Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana. It is the flagship university, flagship campus of Indiana University and, with ...

in 1999, with a double-major in history and sociology. Immediately after earning her degree, she went to work as a high school social studies teacher at Frankfort High School and

Munster High School Munster High School (MHS) is a public high school in Munster, Indiana. It is part of the School Town of Munster. Munster High School serves as the only high school for the Munster School District. Demographics The demographic breakdown of the 1,5 ...

, in Frankfort and

Munster, Indiana Munster is a suburban town in North Township, Lake County, Indiana, United States. It is in the Chicago metropolitan area, approximately southeast of the Chicago Loop, and shares municipal boundaries with Hammond to the north, Highland to th ...

, respectively. While teaching, she pursued further education, and, in 2004, received her first master's degree in secondary education curriculum and instruction from

Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis, commonly referred to as IUPUI, is a public research university in Indianapolis, Indiana. It is a collaboration between Indiana University and Purdue University that offers undergraduate, grad ...

. In 2005, she moved to

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...

, where she continued her education at the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...

and worked on the staff for Undergraduate Academic Services in the College of Letters & Sciences. She earned her second master's degree in 2008 in Educational Administration and licensure in Educational Administration. In 2009, she was hired by the

Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, headquartered in Madison, is the state education and public library management agency in the state of Wisconsin.

as an assistant director and education consultant, where she remained until 2014. During these years, she continued her education at the University of Wisconsin, and, in 2012, earned her doctorate in educational leadership & policy analysis. In 2014, she moved to

Hollandale, Wisconsin Hollandale is a village in Iowa County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 306 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Madison Metropolitan Statistical Area. History The village was first named Bennville and later was named Hollandale. ...

, to become principal of Pecatonica Elementary School. The following year, the Pecatonica Area School Board selected her as school district administrator. During her term, Underly was outspoken for the interests of rural school districts. In May 2020, following the announcement that incumbent State Superintendent Carolyn Stanford Taylor would not seek election to a full four-year term, Underly announced her candidacy for State Superintendent of Public Instruction. Underly topped a field of seven candidates in the February 2021

nonpartisan primary Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the ...

, and went on to defeat former Brown Deer superintendent Deborah Kerr in the April general election. Underly received the endorsements of retired Republican state senator

Dale Schultz Dale W. Schultz (born June 12, 1953) is a Republican politician who represented the 17th District in the Wisconsin Senate from 1991 until 2015. He was previously a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from 1982 through 1991. Background Schu ...

, Democratic U.S. senator

Tammy Baldwin Tammy Suzanne Green Baldwin (born February 11, 1962) is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Wisconsin since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, she served three terms in the Wisconsin Stat ...

, U.S. representatives

Ron Kind Ronald James Kind (born March 16, 1963) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the U.S. representative for , since 1997. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district is in the western part of the state and is anchored by La Crosse ...

Gwen Moore Gwendolynne Sophia Moore (born April 18, 1951) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2005. In 2016, Moore was elected to serve as caucus whip of the Congressional Black Caucus for the 115th United States Congres ...

, and

Mark Pocan Mark William Pocan ( ; born August 14, 1964) is an American politician and businessman serving as the U.S. representative from Wisconsin's 2nd congressional district since 2013. The district is based in the state capital, Madison. A member of th ...

, former Governor

Jim Doyle James Edward Doyle, Jr., (born November 23, 1945) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 44th governor of Wisconsin, serving from January 6, 2003 to January 3, 2011. In his first election to the governorship, he defeated incu ...

, and nearly every Democrat in the

Wisconsin Legislature The Wisconsin Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The Legislature is a bicameral body composed of the upper house, Wisconsin State Senate, and the lower Wisconsin State Assembly, both of which have had Republican ...

. Her opponent, a proponent of voucher school expansion, was endorsed by former

U.S. Secretary of Education The United States secretary of education is the head of the United States Department of Education, U.S. Department of Education. The secretary serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States, and the federal government, on ...

Arne Duncan Arne Starkey Duncan (born November 6, 1964) is an American educator who served as United States Secretary of Education from 2009 to 2015 and as Chief Executive Officer of Chicago Public Schools from 2001 to 2008. A lifelong resident of Chicago, Du ...

and Democratic state senator

Lena Taylor Lena C. Taylor (born July 25, 1966) is an American politician and attorney serving as a member of the Wisconsin Senate from the 4th district. She previously served in the Wisconsin Assembly, representing the 18th district from 2003 to 2005. Tay ...

Personal life and family

Underly and her husband John live in

; they have two children.

Electoral history

Wisconsin Superintendent of Public Instruction (2021)

, colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", Nonpartisan Primary, February 16, 2021 , colspan="6" style="text-align:center;background-color: #e9e9e9;", General Election, April 6, 2021

References

External links

*
Campaign websiteArchived January 26, 2021

Jill Underly, PhD
at

Pecatonica Area School District Pecatonica Area School District is a school district based in Blanchardville, Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is ...

Archived January 21, 2021
{{DEFAULTSORT:Underly, Jill 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians Date of birth uncertain Educators from Indiana Educators from Wisconsin Indiana University Bloomington alumni Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis alumni Living people People from Iowa County, Wisconsin University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Superintendents of Public Instruction of Wisconsin Year of birth uncertain