John Pittenger
Encyclopedia
John C. Pittenger was an American
lawyer
, academic and former Democratic
member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
, serving two non-consecutive terms in the State House. He was appointed the Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Education
from 1972 until 1976.
Pittenger served as the dean
of the Rutgers University School of Law - Camden from 1981 until 1986.
on May 23, 1930, to parents, Nicholas Otto and Cornelia VanDerveer Chapman Pittenger. He attended public school in the suburb
of Swarthmore, Pennsylvania
, before enrolling in Phillips Exeter Academy
in Exeter, New Hampshire
. He was a member of the Society of Friends, also known as the Quakers.
Pittenger graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor's degree
in American history from Harvard University
in 1951. Following his graduation from Harvard, Pittenger attended the London School of Economics
as a Frank Knox Fellow. He simultaneously enlisted in the United States Army from 1952 until 1955, serving as a first lieutenant in the army's infantry
and government intelligence units.
He earned his cum laude law degree
from Harvard Law School
in 1958.
, in 1958 and practiced law in the city until 1965. He first joined the law firm
, Barley, Snyder, Cooper, and Mueller, before establishing his own private law firm in Lancaster.
.
After becoming active in the Democratic Party
, Pittenger was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
, representing his district from 1965 to 1968. During his first term, Pittenger was the principal sponsor of the Mental Health/Mental Retardation Act of 1966 and drafted the bill for Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency scholarship
program.
Pittenger was defeated for re-election to the Pennsylvania State House. Following his election loss, Pittenger worked as the director of research for the Democratic minority Caucus of the House of Representatives from 1967 to 1968.
However, he campaigned for and was re-elected to the Pennsylvania State House in the newly created 96th
district, serving once again from 1969 until 1970. He served as a member of the Joint Legislative Data Processing Committee and the state Democratic Policy Committee.
Pittenger was the first member of the Pennsylvania General Assembly
to have high school seniors serve as legislative pages in the state House of Representatives. He advocated for increased powers for the Pennsylvania Board of Education. Pittenger also supported a controversial bill which would have charged graduated tuition for students at the colleges of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education
based on income
.
between the governor and Pennsylvania Department of Education
in January 1971.
Pittenger helped to guide Pennsylvania's first personal income tax bill through the Pennsylvania General Assembly as legislative secretary. He shepharded a successful bill which created the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources. He also guided reforms to the Workmen's Compensation and Unemployment Compensation Acts.
in 1972.
Pittenger established the state government internship program for in-state college students and the Pennsylvania Governor's School for the Arts
.
He championed mandated equal athletic programs for female athletes in Pennsylvania public schools. Pittenger guided the first complete rewrite and modernization of the Pennsylvania school code in more than thirty years. He also supported the adoption of achievement and attitudinal testing for students in fifth, eighth and eleventh grade.
Pittenger also served as the chairman of the National Council of Chief State School Officers for three years.
. He remained at Harvard as a visiting lecturer from January 1977 until June 1978.
He returned to Pennsylvania state government in 1978 when then Pennsylvania House Speaker
K. Leroy Irvis
recruited Pittenger as the chairman of a commission to reform the House of Representatives. The final report issued by Pittenger's committee led to the formation of the Bi-Partisan Management Committee.
In 1979, Pittenger announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for the United States Senate
seat being vacated by Republican Richard Schweiker
. However, he withdrew from the Democratic primary race in 1980 after Pittsburgh Mayor Pete Flaherty announced his intention to seek the seat as well. Republican Arlen Specter
went on to narrowly defeat Flaherty in the 1980 Seante election
.
Pittenger was appointed as the dean of Rutgers School of Law–Camden in 1981. Under Pittenger, the law school added programs specializing in international law
and taxation. He persuaded Rutgers to build its first dormitory at the Camden campus and introduced a law faculty exchange program with Karl Francis University in Graz, Austria.
Pittenger resigned as dean of Rutgers in 1986 and moved to his family's Pittwillow Farm in Chester County, Pennsylvania
. He continued to teach law at Rutgers until his official retirement in 1994. In 1982, Pittenger won the Judge Edward Finch prize from the American Bar Association for the outstanding Law Day speech.
He was appointed to the Pennsylvania State Board of Education from 1991 until 1996.
Pittenger also worked as the pre-law advisor and adjunct professor of government at Franklin & Marshall College
in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, during parts of his career. He also worked as F&M's first squash coach in the college's history.
Among his many works, Pittenger authored his memoir, Politics Ain't Beanbag and co-authored a high school textbook on constitutional law
titled The Pursuit of Justice with Henry W. Bragdon.
He moved to Homestead Village, a retirement community
in Lancaster, in 1997, but remained active in Democratic politics. The Lancaster County Democratic Committee awarded him with its first ever Lifetime Achievement Award in 2003.
He died of complications from Parkinson's disease
at Homestead Village in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, on December 6, 2009, at the age of 79. Pittenger was survived by his wife, Pauline Miller Pittenger; stepsons, Josiah Leet and Matthew Leet; and his sister, Jane Kellenberger.
A memorial service attended by more than 300 people, including Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell
, was held at Franklin & Marshall College's Barshinger Center on January 13, 2010. The service was moved from the college's smaller Nevin Chapel to accommodate the large number of attendees.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
, academic and former Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two year terms from single member districts....
, serving two non-consecutive terms in the State House. He was appointed the Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Education
Pennsylvania Department of Education
The Pennsylvania Department of Education is the executive department of the state charged with K-12 and adult educational budgeting, management and guidelines. As the state education agency, its activities are directed by Pennsylvania's Secretary of Education, Gerald L. Zahorchak...
from 1972 until 1976.
Pittenger served as the dean
Dean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
of the Rutgers University School of Law - Camden from 1981 until 1986.
Early life
Pittenger was born in PhiladelphiaPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
on May 23, 1930, to parents, Nicholas Otto and Cornelia VanDerveer Chapman Pittenger. He attended public school in the suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
of Swarthmore, Pennsylvania
Swarthmore, Pennsylvania
Swarthmore is a borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. Swarthmore was originally named Westdale in honor of noted painter Benjamin West, who was one of the early residents of the town. The name was changed to Swarthmore after the establishment of Swarthmore College...
, before enrolling in Phillips Exeter Academy
Phillips Exeter Academy
Phillips Exeter Academy is a private secondary school located in Exeter, New Hampshire, in the United States.Exeter is noted for its application of Harkness education, a system based on a conference format of teacher and student interaction, similar to the Socratic method of learning through asking...
in Exeter, New Hampshire
Exeter, New Hampshire
Exeter is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The town's population was 14,306 at the 2010 census. Exeter was the county seat until 1997, when county offices were moved to neighboring Brentwood...
. He was a member of the Society of Friends, also known as the Quakers.
Pittenger graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in American history from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1951. Following his graduation from Harvard, Pittenger attended the London School of Economics
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
as a Frank Knox Fellow. He simultaneously enlisted in the United States Army from 1952 until 1955, serving as a first lieutenant in the army's infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
and government intelligence units.
He earned his cum laude law degree
Law degree
A Law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Such degrees are generally preparation for legal careers; but while their curricula may be reviewed by legal authority, they do not themselves confer a license...
from Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
in 1958.
Career
Pittenger moved to Lancaster, PennsylvaniaLancaster, Pennsylvania
Lancaster is a city in the south-central part of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is the county seat of Lancaster County and one of the older inland cities in the United States, . With a population of 59,322, it ranks eighth in population among Pennsylvania's cities...
, in 1958 and practiced law in the city until 1965. He first joined the law firm
Law firm
A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to represent clients in civil or criminal cases, business transactions, and other...
, Barley, Snyder, Cooper, and Mueller, before establishing his own private law firm in Lancaster.
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Pittenger served two non-consecutive terms in the Pennsylvania House of RepresentativesPennsylvania House of Representatives
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two year terms from single member districts....
.
After becoming active in the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, Pittenger was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two year terms from single member districts....
, representing his district from 1965 to 1968. During his first term, Pittenger was the principal sponsor of the Mental Health/Mental Retardation Act of 1966 and drafted the bill for Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency scholarship
Scholarship
A scholarship is an award of financial aid for a student to further education. Scholarships are awarded on various criteria usually reflecting the values and purposes of the donor or founder of the award.-Types:...
program.
Pittenger was defeated for re-election to the Pennsylvania State House. Following his election loss, Pittenger worked as the director of research for the Democratic minority Caucus of the House of Representatives from 1967 to 1968.
However, he campaigned for and was re-elected to the Pennsylvania State House in the newly created 96th
Pennsylvania House of Representatives, District 96
The 96th Pennsylvania House of Representatives District is located in Lancaster County and includes the following areas:* Lancaster* Lancaster Township * Manheim Township -Representatives:...
district, serving once again from 1969 until 1970. He served as a member of the Joint Legislative Data Processing Committee and the state Democratic Policy Committee.
Pittenger was the first member of the Pennsylvania General Assembly
Pennsylvania General Assembly
The Pennsylvania General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. The legislature convenes in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. In colonial times , the legislature was known as the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly. Since the Constitution of 1776, written by...
to have high school seniors serve as legislative pages in the state House of Representatives. He advocated for increased powers for the Pennsylvania Board of Education. Pittenger also supported a controversial bill which would have charged graduated tuition for students at the colleges of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education
Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education
The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and a large public university system in the United States. It is the tenth-largest university system in the United States and 43rd largest in the world...
based on income
Income
Income is the consumption and savings opportunity gained by an entity within a specified time frame, which is generally expressed in monetary terms. However, for households and individuals, "income is the sum of all the wages, salaries, profits, interests payments, rents and other forms of earnings...
.
Legislative Secretary
Pittenger became a member of the Commission on School Finance after leaving the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 1970. Pennsylvania Governor Milton J. Shapp appointed Pittenger as his legislative secretary, as well as the liaisonLiaison
Liaison in general means:# Communication between two or more groups.# Co-operation, working together.but may refer to:* Affair, an unfaithful or adulterous sexual relationship* Air Alliance, a Canadian airline whose call sign was "Liaison'...
between the governor and Pennsylvania Department of Education
Pennsylvania Department of Education
The Pennsylvania Department of Education is the executive department of the state charged with K-12 and adult educational budgeting, management and guidelines. As the state education agency, its activities are directed by Pennsylvania's Secretary of Education, Gerald L. Zahorchak...
in January 1971.
Pittenger helped to guide Pennsylvania's first personal income tax bill through the Pennsylvania General Assembly as legislative secretary. He shepharded a successful bill which created the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources. He also guided reforms to the Workmen's Compensation and Unemployment Compensation Acts.
Secretary of Education
Governor Shapp appointed Pittenger as the Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of EducationPennsylvania Department of Education
The Pennsylvania Department of Education is the executive department of the state charged with K-12 and adult educational budgeting, management and guidelines. As the state education agency, its activities are directed by Pennsylvania's Secretary of Education, Gerald L. Zahorchak...
in 1972.
Pittenger established the state government internship program for in-state college students and the Pennsylvania Governor's School for the Arts
Governor's School for the Arts
The Governor's School for the Arts is a regional secondary arts school sponsored by the Virginia Department of Education and the public school divisions of Chesapeake, Franklin, Isle of Wight County, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Southampton County, Suffolk, and Virginia Beach...
.
He championed mandated equal athletic programs for female athletes in Pennsylvania public schools. Pittenger guided the first complete rewrite and modernization of the Pennsylvania school code in more than thirty years. He also supported the adoption of achievement and attitudinal testing for students in fifth, eighth and eleventh grade.
Pittenger also served as the chairman of the National Council of Chief State School Officers for three years.
Later political career and academia
Pittenger resigned as Pennsylvania Secretary of Education in 1976 in order to take a position as a visiting professor at the Harvard Graduate School of EducationHarvard Graduate School of Education
The Harvard Graduate School of Education is one of the graduate schools of Harvard University, and is one of the top schools of education in the United States. It was founded in 1920, the same year it invented the Ed.D...
. He remained at Harvard as a visiting lecturer from January 1977 until June 1978.
He returned to Pennsylvania state government in 1978 when then Pennsylvania House Speaker
Speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
The speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives holds the oldest state-wide elected office in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Since its first session under the Frame of Government in 1682, presided over by William Penn, over 130 House members have been elevated to the speaker's chair...
K. Leroy Irvis
K. Leroy Irvis
K. Leroy Irvis was the first African American to serve as a speaker of the house in any state legislature in the United States since Reconstruction. John Roy Lynch of Mississippi was the first African American to hold that position. Mr...
recruited Pittenger as the chairman of a commission to reform the House of Representatives. The final report issued by Pittenger's committee led to the formation of the Bi-Partisan Management Committee.
In 1979, Pittenger announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
seat being vacated by Republican Richard Schweiker
Richard Schweiker
Richard Schultz Schweiker is a former U.S. Congressman and Senator representing the state of Pennsylvania. He later was Secretary of Health and Human Services in the Cabinet of President Ronald Reagan.-Early life:...
. However, he withdrew from the Democratic primary race in 1980 after Pittsburgh Mayor Pete Flaherty announced his intention to seek the seat as well. Republican Arlen Specter
Arlen Specter
Arlen Specter is a former United States Senator from Pennsylvania. Specter is a Democrat, but was a Republican from 1965 until switching to the Democratic Party in 2009...
went on to narrowly defeat Flaherty in the 1980 Seante election
United States Senate elections, 1980
The 1980 U.S. Senate elections coincided with Ronald Reagan's election to the Presidency. Reagan's large margin of victory over incumbent Jimmy Carter pulled in many Democratic voters and gave a huge boost to Republican senate candidates....
.
Pittenger was appointed as the dean of Rutgers School of Law–Camden in 1981. Under Pittenger, the law school added programs specializing in international law
International law
Public international law concerns the structure and conduct of sovereign states; analogous entities, such as the Holy See; and intergovernmental organizations. To a lesser degree, international law also may affect multinational corporations and individuals, an impact increasingly evolving beyond...
and taxation. He persuaded Rutgers to build its first dormitory at the Camden campus and introduced a law faculty exchange program with Karl Francis University in Graz, Austria.
Pittenger resigned as dean of Rutgers in 1986 and moved to his family's Pittwillow Farm in Chester County, Pennsylvania
Chester County, Pennsylvania
-State parks:*French Creek State Park*Marsh Creek State Park*White Clay Creek Preserve-Demographics:As of the 2010 census, the county was 85.5% White, 6.1% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American or Alaskan Native, 3.9% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian, 1.8% were two or more races, and 2.4% were...
. He continued to teach law at Rutgers until his official retirement in 1994. In 1982, Pittenger won the Judge Edward Finch prize from the American Bar Association for the outstanding Law Day speech.
He was appointed to the Pennsylvania State Board of Education from 1991 until 1996.
Pittenger also worked as the pre-law advisor and adjunct professor of government at Franklin & Marshall College
Franklin & Marshall College
Franklin & Marshall College is a four-year private co-educational residential national liberal arts college in the Northwest Corridor neighborhood of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, United States....
in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, during parts of his career. He also worked as F&M's first squash coach in the college's history.
Among his many works, Pittenger authored his memoir, Politics Ain't Beanbag and co-authored a high school textbook on constitutional law
Constitutional law
Constitutional law is the body of law which defines the relationship of different entities within a state, namely, the executive, the legislature and the judiciary....
titled The Pursuit of Justice with Henry W. Bragdon.
He moved to Homestead Village, a retirement community
Retirement community
A retirement community, or active adult community, is a very broad, generic term that covers many varieties of housing for retirees and seniors - especially designed or geared for people who no longer work, or restricted to those over a certain age . It differs from a retirement home which is a...
in Lancaster, in 1997, but remained active in Democratic politics. The Lancaster County Democratic Committee awarded him with its first ever Lifetime Achievement Award in 2003.
He died of complications from Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system...
at Homestead Village in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, on December 6, 2009, at the age of 79. Pittenger was survived by his wife, Pauline Miller Pittenger; stepsons, Josiah Leet and Matthew Leet; and his sister, Jane Kellenberger.
A memorial service attended by more than 300 people, including Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell
Ed Rendell
Edward Gene "Ed" Rendell is an American politician who served as the 45th Governor of Pennsylvania. Rendell, a member of the Democratic Party, was elected Governor of Pennsylvania in 2002, and his term of office began January 21, 2003...
, was held at Franklin & Marshall College's Barshinger Center on January 13, 2010. The service was moved from the college's smaller Nevin Chapel to accommodate the large number of attendees.