Susan Shannon Engeleiter
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Susan Shannon Engeleiter (
née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...
Susan Jane Shannon; born March 18, 1952) is an American Republican politician, lawyer, and businesswoman who served as the first female Administrator of the
U.S. Small Business Administration The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent agency of the United States government that provides support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The mission of the Small Business Administration is "to maintain and stre ...
.


Early life and education

Engeleiter was born in Brookfield, Wisconsin to Helen "Jo" Hildebrandt Shannon and Arthur W. Shannon, a Republican fundraiser and later the treasurer of the Republican Party of Wisconsin. She graduated from Brookfield Central High School in 1970. She graduated from 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 ...
in 1974 and received a
juris doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...
from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1981. In 1976, she married Gerald Engeleiter. The couple later divorced.


Political career

Engeleiter was elected to the 99th district of Wisconsin Assembly in 1974. At age 22, she was the youngest woman ever elected to 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 ...
. She served in the Assembly until January 1979, having decided against running for re-election in 1978 and instead, sought the congressional seat being vacated by
Bob Kasten Robert Walter Kasten Jr. (born June 19, 1942) is an American Republican politician from the state of Wisconsin who served as a U.S. Representative from 1975 to 1979 and as a United States Senator from 1981 to 1993. Background Kasten was born in ...
, who decided to run for Wisconsin governor. Engeleiter lost the primary to then-State Senator
Jim Sensenbrenner Frank James Sensenbrenner Jr. (; born June 14, 1943) is an American politician who represented in the United States House of Representatives from 1979 to 2021 (numbered as the 9th district until 2003). He is a member of the Republican Party. ...
by 589 votes.Goldman, T.R.
"The Man With The Iron Gavel"
''Legal Times'', May 2, 2005.
In April 1980, Engeleiter was elected in a special election to the Wisconsin State Senate. There she served as Assistant Minority Leader from 1982 to 1984, and as Minority Leader from 1984 to 1989. She was the first woman to serve as Minority Leader.


1988 U.S. Senate campaign

Engeleiter ran for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by
William Proxmire Edward William Proxmire (November 11, 1915 – December 15, 2005) was an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a United States Senator from Wisconsin from 1957 to 1989. He holds the record for being the longest-servi ...
in 1988. In the primary election, she defeated state GOP chairman
Steve King Steven Arnold King (born May 28, 1949) is an American far-right politician and businessman who served as a U.S. representative from Iowa from 2003 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he represented Iowa's 5th congressional district u ...
. King had labeled Engeleiter a moderate, while touting his conservative credentials. Engeleiter faced Democrat
Herb Kohl Herbert H. Kohl (born February 7, 1935) is an American businessman and politician. Alongside his brother and father, the Kohl family created the Kohl's department stores chain, of which Kohl went on to be president and CEO. Kohl also served as a ...
, former chairman of the state Democratic Party, in the November general election. On November 2, 1988, as polls showed Engeleiter and Kohl running neck-to-neck, President
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...
visited
Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...
to headline a campaign rally and fundraiser for Engeleiter. Engeleiter lost the race to Kohl, by a 52% to 48% margin.


Business career

In January 1989, President
George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...
nominated Engeleiter to be the Administrator of the Small Business Administration. She was confirmed by the U.S. Senate and served in that position until 1991, the first woman to hold the position. During her term as administrator, Engeleiter was also appointed chairwoman of the National Women's Business Council. From 1991 to 1996 she also served on the President's Export Council. After leaving the SBA, Engeleiter served as Vice-President of Government Affairs at
Honeywell Honeywell International Inc. is an American publicly traded, multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. It primarily operates in four areas of business: aerospace, building technologies, performance ma ...
from 1992 to 1998. At Honeywell, she handled legislative and regulatory efforts in energy, environmental, and procurement areas. She represented Honeywell on several industry association boards and on United States government agency advisory boards. Engeleiter has been President of Data Recognition Corporation since 1998 and the company's
CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
since 2006. She also serves on the board of the Children's Theater Company, Wisconsin Alumni Association,
Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation The Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is an addiction treatment and advocacy organization that was created in 2014 with the merger of the Minnesota-based Hazelden Foundation and the Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage, California in the United State ...
.


Electoral history


References


External links

* , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Engeleiter, Susan 1952 births 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American women politicians Administrators of the Small Business Administration American chief operating officers Businesspeople from Wisconsin Candidates in the 1978 United States elections Living people Republican Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly People from Brookfield, Wisconsin University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni University of Wisconsin Law School alumni Republican Party Wisconsin state senators Women state legislators in Wisconsin 21st-century American women