John Engler
Michigan Governor (1991-2003)
First elected in 1990 as Michigan's 46th governor, Governor John Engler is now America's most senior governor.
John Engler was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives in 1970 at the age of 22. He went on to serve in the Michigan State Senate from 1979 to 1990 and was Senate Majority Leader from 1984 to 1990, when he was elected Governor. Engler’s three terms as Michigan’s top executive were marked by an unprecedented focus on education reform, ranging from the creation of charter schools to the state takeover of Detroit’s failing public school system and the creation of several educational incentives for students, most notably the Michigan merit award to help more Michigan students go to college. Engler presently is the president of The National Association of Manufacturers.
“It was clear from all the reading I’d done, all the conversations I’d had with leaders in business, that education was becoming the defining difference among the states.”
— Governor John Engler
