Ken Rizer (born September 17, 1964) was an American politician. A former

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 ...

(Rizer renounced his party affiliation in July 2018), he served the 68th District in the

Iowa House of Representatives The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly, the upper house being the Iowa Senate. There are 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state, formed ...

from 2015 to 2018. Rizer is a retired colonel in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

. Beginning January 2017, Rizer served on the Judiciary, Public Safety, Ways & Means, and State Government committees in the Iowa House.

Early life and education

Rizer was born in

Minneapolis, Minnesota 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 ...

. He graduated from Southwest High School in Minneapolis. Rizer attended the

United States Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and Uni ...

, where he received a B.S. in Foreign Affairs and Political Science and was accepted into the

Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship The Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Program was established by the United States Congress in 1986 in honor of former United States Senate, United States Senator and 1964 United States presidential election, 1964 president ...

program. As a junior officer in the United States military, Rizer was admitted to The Olmsted Scholar Program, where he studied Swedish at the

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...

’s

Foreign Service Institute The Foreign Service Institute (FSI) is the United States federal government's primary training institution for employees of the U.S. foreign affairs community, preparing American diplomats as well as other professionals to advance U.S. foreig ...

before spending two years at

Stockholm University Stockholm University ( sv, Stockholms universitet) is a public research university in Stockholm, Sweden, founded as a college in 1878, with university status since 1960. With over 33,000 students at four different faculties: law, humanities, so ...

in Sweden studying International Security. He received his master's degree in Strategic Studies at Air University’s

Air War College The Air War College (AWC) is the senior Professional Military Education (PME) school of the U.S. Air Force. A part of the United States Air Force's Air University, AWC emphasizes the employment of air, space, and cyberspace in joint operation ...

, an MPA from the

John F. Kennedy School of Government The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

, and an MBA from the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...

Career

Rizer served 25 years as an Air Force fighter pilot and commander, completing 15 assignments and leading men and women in combat during tours in Iraq. He led

Joint Base Andrews Joint Base Andrews (JBA) is a United States military facility located in Prince George's County, Maryland. The facility is under the jurisdiction of the United States Air Force 316th Wing, Air Force District of Washington (AFDW). The base was e ...

, the home of

Air Force One Air Force One is the official air traffic control designated call sign for a United States Air Force aircraft carrying the president of the United States. In common parlance, the term is used to denote U.S. Air Force aircraft modified and used ...

, as Base Commander. After retiring from the military in 2012, Rizer became the Senior Vice President of Operations for Goodwill Industries Goodwill of the Heartland. He currently holds a position as an assistant professor of aviation at the University of Dubuque in Dubuque, IA. As of June 2020, the University of Dubuque faculty directory does not list Rizer as a faculty member

Electoral history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rizer, Ken 1964 births Republican Party members of the Iowa House of Representatives Living people United States Air Force officers Air War College alumni United States Air Force Academy alumni Harvard Kennedy School alumni Stockholm University alumni University of Iowa alumni