Robert W. Pritchard (born February 2, 1945) is a Republican politician who serves on the Northern Illinois University Board of Trustees. He was previously a member of the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 re ...

, representing the 70th district from December 2003 until July 2018. The 70th district included parts of DeKalb County, Kane and Boone counties.

Early life, education and career

Pritchard was born February 2, 1945 in

Aurora, Illinois Aurora is a city in the Chicago metropolitan area located partially in DuPage County, Illinois, DuPage, Kane County, Illinois, Kane, Kendall County, Illinois, Kendall, and Will County, Illinois, Will counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. Locat ...

. He grew up on a farm near Hinckley, Illinois. Pritchard majored in communications at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and earned both a

bachelor's 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 ye ...

and master's degree. His wife, Mary, is an Associate Dean at Northern Illinois University. They have two grown sons. After graduation, Pritchard returned to work on the family farm, but also began working as a radio and TV broadcaster for local stations. In keeping with his expertise, Pritchard delivered the farming updates and local weather reports. He also worked in various marketing, public relations and community relation roles at DEKALB Genetics Corporation/

Monsanto Company The Monsanto Company () was an American agrochemical and agricultural biotechnology corporation founded in 1901 and headquartered in Creve Coeur, Missouri. Monsanto's best known product is Roundup (herbicide), Roundup, a glyphosate-based herbic ...

and for several universities.

Political career

Pritchard served on the Hinckley-Big Rock Board of Education and was elected to a leadership position for the DeKalb County Farm Bureau. He was elected to the DeKalb County Board and served as its chairman. In December 2003, Pritchard was appointed to the Illinois House of Representatives after the passing of David A. Wirsing. He was active in such issues as early childhood and education, health care, conservation, the environment, job creation, and protecting the manufacturing industry. He serves as Republican spokesman on the State Government Administration Committee and is co-chair of the Legislative Education Caucus, which he helped form. He announced his retirement from the Illinois General Assembly. He resigned from the Illinois House of Representatives on July 1, 2018, to accept an appointment to the Northern Illinois University Board of Trustees. During the

2008 Republican Party presidential primaries From January 3 to June 3, 2008, voters of the Republican Party chose their nominee for president in the 2008 United States presidential election. Senator John McCain of Arizona was selected as the nominee through a series of primary electio ...

, Pritchard endorsed the presidential campaign of

Rudy Giuliani Rudolph William Louis Giuliani (, ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 107th Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney General from 1981 to 198 ...

References

External links

Representative Robert W. Pritchard (R) 70th District
at the Illinois General Assembly **By session
98th97th96th95th94th93rdState Representative Robert Pritchard
constituency site *
Robert Pritchard
at Illinois House Republican Caucus {{DEFAULTSORT:Pritchard, Robert W. Republican Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives People from Aurora, Illinois American people of Welsh descent 1945 births Living people University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign College of Media alumni 21st-century American politicians County board members in Illinois