John Persell
Encyclopedia
John S. Persell is a Minnesota
politician and a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives
representing District 4A, which includes portions of Beltrami
, Cass
and Itasca
counties in the northern part of the state. A Democrat
, he is also a retired water quality specialist and environmental policy analyst for the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe
.
Persell was elected in 2008, running after two-term Rep. Frank Moe opted not to seek re-election. He was re-elected in 2010. He is currently a member of the House Environment Policy and Oversight Committee, and also serves on the Environment Policy and Oversight Subcommittee for the Game, Fish and Forestry Division, and on the Finance subcommittees for the Energy Finance and Policy Division and the Environment and Natural Resources Finance Division, of which he is vice chair.
Persell majored in Biology at Bemidji State University
in Bemidji
, and served in the United States Air Force
. He was a member of the Beltrami County Soil and Water Conservation Board, and of the Frohn Township Board of Supervisors. He is a member of the American Legion
Honor Guard
, and has worked as a mentor in the STEM Program (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) at Leech Lake Tribal College
in Cass Lake
.
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
politician and a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives
Minnesota House of Representatives
The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower house in the Minnesota State Legislature. There are 134 members elected to two-year terms, twice the number of members in the Minnesota Senate. Each senate district is divided in half and given the suffix A or B...
representing District 4A, which includes portions of Beltrami
Beltrami County, Minnesota
Beltrami County is a county located in the northern part of the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of 2010, the population was 44,442. Its county seat is Bemidji. Portions of the Leech Lake and Red Lake Indian reservations are in the county. The northernmost portion of the Mississippi River flows...
, Cass
Cass County, Minnesota
Cass County is a county located in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of 2010, the population was 28,567. Its county seat is Walker. A portion of the Leech Lake Indian Reservation is in the county.-Geography:...
and Itasca
Itasca County, Minnesota
Itasca County is a county located in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It is named after Lake Itasca, which is in turn a shortened version the Latin words veritas caput, meaning 'truth' and 'head', a reference to the source of the Mississippi River. As of 2010, the population was 45,058. Its county seat...
counties in the northern part of the state. A Democrat
Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
The Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party is a major political party in the state of Minnesota and the state affiliate of the Democratic Party. It was created on April 15, 1944, with the merger of the Minnesota Democratic Party and the Farmer–Labor Party...
, he is also a retired water quality specialist and environmental policy analyst for the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe
Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe
The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, also known as the Leech Lake Band of Chippewa Indians or the Leech Lake Band of Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, and as Gaa-zagaskwaajimekaag Ojibweg in the Ojibwe language, is an Ojibwa tribe located in Minnesota. The tribe boasts 8,861 tribal members as of July, 2007...
.
Persell was elected in 2008, running after two-term Rep. Frank Moe opted not to seek re-election. He was re-elected in 2010. He is currently a member of the House Environment Policy and Oversight Committee, and also serves on the Environment Policy and Oversight Subcommittee for the Game, Fish and Forestry Division, and on the Finance subcommittees for the Energy Finance and Policy Division and the Environment and Natural Resources Finance Division, of which he is vice chair.
Persell majored in Biology at Bemidji State University
Bemidji State University
Bemidji State University is a public state university in Bemidji, Minnesota, USA, located on the shores of Lake Bemidji. It is a part of Minnesota State Colleges and Universities .-History:BSU was founded in 1919 as Bemidji State Normal School...
in Bemidji
Bemidji, Minnesota
Bemidji is a city in Beltrami County, Minnesota, United States. Its population was at 13,431 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Beltrami County. Bemidji is the most major city in North Central Minnesota and the largest commercial center between Grand Forks, North Dakota and Duluth,...
, and served in the United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
. He was a member of the Beltrami County Soil and Water Conservation Board, and of the Frohn Township Board of Supervisors. He is a member of the American Legion
American Legion
The American Legion is a mutual-aid organization of veterans of the United States armed forces chartered by the United States Congress. It was founded to benefit those veterans who served during a wartime period as defined by Congress...
Honor Guard
Honor guard
An honor guard, or ceremonial guard, is a ceremonial unit, usually military in nature and composed of volunteers who are carefully screened for their physical ability and dexterity...
, and has worked as a mentor in the STEM Program (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) at Leech Lake Tribal College
Leech Lake Tribal College
Leech Lake Tribal College is a small, associate degree-granting, Anishinaabe college in Cass Lake, Minnesota, chartered by the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe and accredited by the Higher Learning Commission...
in Cass Lake
Cass Lake, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 860 people, 331 households, and 192 families residing in the city. The population density was 753.2 people per square mile . There were 384 housing units at an average density of 336.3 per square mile . The racial makeup of the city was 30.12% White, 64.42%...
.