Morris L. "Morrie" Lanning (born August 27, 1944, in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

) is a

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

politician and former member of the

Minnesota House of Representatives The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the U.S. state of Minnesota's Minnesota Legislature, legislature. It operates in conjunction with the Minnesota Senate, the state's upper chamber, to write and pass legislation, whic ...

representing District 9A, which included portions of

Clay County Clay County is the name of 18 counties in the United States. Most are named for Henry Clay, U.S. Senator and statesman: * Clay County, Alabama * Clay County, Arkansas (named for John Clayton, and originally named Clayton County) * Clay County, Fl ...

in the northwestern part of the state. A Republican, he is a retired vice president for student affairs and dean of students at Concordia College in Moorhead. Lanning was first elected in 2002, and was re-elected in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2010. He was a member of the House's State and Local Government Operations Reform, Technology and Elections Committee and the Taxes Committee. He also served on the Finance Subcommittee for the Capital Investment Finance Division, on the State and Local Government Operations Reform, Technology and Elections Subcommittee for the Local Government Division, and on the Taxes Subcommittee for the Property and Local Sales Tax Division. He was appointed by Governor Tim Pawlenty to the Minnesota Statehood Sesquicentennial Commission, serving from 2006 to 2008. Prior to being elected to the legislature, Lanning was active in city government in his hometown of Moorhead, first on the city council from 1974 to 1979, and then as mayor for 21 years from 1980 to 2001. During his time as mayor, he served as president of the Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities, as a founding board member of the Greater Minnesota Housing Fund, as a board member of the League of Minnesota Cities, as founder and board member of the Rural Initiatives Coalition, and as president of the Minnesota Mayors Association. Lanning graduated from

Moorhead High School Moorhead High School is a public high school in Moorhead, Minnesota, United States. Established in 1883, the school serves approximately 2,000 students in grades 912. The school has a student-teacher ratio of 18.81. Extracurricular activities ...

, then attended Concordia College in Moorhead, graduating with a

B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...

in psychology, history and political science. He later attended

North Dakota State University North Dakota State University (NDSU, formally North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Fargo, North Dakota, United States. It was ...

in Fargo, earning a

M.S. A Master of Science (; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medicine ...

in guidance and counseling.

References

External links

Rep. Lanning Web Page

Minnesota Public Radio Votetracker: Rep. Morrie Lanning

Project Votesmart - Rep. Morrie Lanning Profile

Morrie Lanning Campaign Web Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lanning, Morrie 1944 births Living people Politicians from Portland, Oregon American Lutherans Republican Party members of the Minnesota House of Representatives Mayors of places in Minnesota People from Moorhead, Minnesota 21st-century members of the Minnesota Legislature