The 73rd Governor of Delaware, Jack Allan Markell, is highly credited for running state government efficiently and effectively, keeping the Delaware’s AAA bond rating while reforming the state’s health and pension systems to make them more sustainable over time.

He worked to create and keep Delaware jobs in a range of industries, including re-opening a shuttered oil refinery in Delaware City and attracting new manufacturing to the site of the old Chrysler plant in Newark. The list of companies that have re-located or expanded their operations in Delaware under the Governor’s leadership include Amazon, Kraft Foods, Atlantis Industries, Citigroup, etc. His administration has also provided grants and loans to help Delaware’s vital small businesses expand and grow.

The Governor made education one of his top priorities. As a result, Delaware won President Obama’s Race to the Top competition to significantly improve public schools. Delaware’s plan was ranked first of 40 state plans by the U.S. Department of Education and was one of just two plans to receive initial funding. Markell has focused on raising expectations for students; elevating the education profession; providing deep support to the state’s lowest-achieving schools and using data to drive decision-making. The state also won a federal Early Learning Challenge Grant with a plan to dramatically raise the percentage of high-need children in quality-rated early childhood programs. To equip Delaware students to compete in a growing global economy, the Governor began a World Language Expansion Initiative.

Governor Markell brings innovative public and private sector experience to the Office of Governor. He began his career in the private sector helping lead the wireless technology revolution as the 13th employee at Nextel (a name he coined), where he served as Senior Vice President for Corporate Development. His other business experience includes a senior management position at Comcast Corporation, work as a consultant with McKinsey and Company and as a banker at First Chicago Corporation. He was elected to three terms as State Treasurer between 1998 and 2008, implementing innovative programs aimed at cutting spending and improving fiscal responsibility.

Governor Markell, 54, was born and raised in Newark, Delaware and graduated from Newark High School along with his wife, Carla. He went on to receive an undergraduate degree in economics and development studies from Brown University and an MBA from the University of Chicago. Governor Markell is a Henry Crown Fellow and a Rodel Fellow at the Aspen Institute.