Marty Meehan

Marty Meehan
President of the University of Massachusetts System
Incumbent
Assumed office July 1, 2015
Preceded by	Robert Caret
Chancellor of the University of Massachusetts Lowell
In office July 1, 2007 – July 1, 2015
Preceded by	William T. Hogan
Succeeded by	Jacqueline Moloney
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts's 5th district
In office January 3, 1993 – July 1, 2007
Preceded by	Chester Atkins
Succeeded by	Niki Tsongas
Personal details
Born	Martin Thomas Meehan (1956-12-30) December 30, 1956 Lowell, Massachusetts, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Alma mater	UMass Lowell Suffolk University

Martin Thomas "Marty" Meehan (born December 30, 1956) is the current President of the University of Massachusetts, a position he assumed on July 1, 2015. A Democrat, Meehan served in the United States House of Representatives from 1993 to 2007 as the representative for Massachusetts's 5th congressional district, and as Chancellor of the University of Massachusetts Lowell from 2007 to 2015. He served as the deputy secretary of state for securities and corporations from 1986 to 1990. In 1991, he became first assistant district attorney for Middlesex County, managing a staff of more than 150, including 80 prosecutors.

Personal life and education

Meehan was born in Lowell, Massachusetts, the eldest son among seven children born to Martin T. Meehan (d. 2000), a compositor for The Lowell Sun, and Alice (Britton) Meehan (d. 2008).^[1] He attended public schools in Lowell, graduating from Lowell High School in 1974.

Meehan attended the University of Massachusetts Lowell, graduating in 1978 with a Bachelor of Science degree in education and political science. Meehan went on to earn a Master of Public Administration degree from Suffolk University in 1981 and a Juris Doctor from the Suffolk University Law School in 1986. He holds honorary degrees from the American College of Greece,^[2] Suffolk University, Green Mountain College in Vermont and Shenkar College of Engineering & Design in Israel.

Meehan is on the board of trustees at Natixis Global Asset Management as well as the board of governors at Lowell General Hospital. Previously, he served on the board of directors at Sage Bank (formerly Lowell Cooperative Bank), Qteros (formerly SunEthanol), D’Youville Foundation and was a member of the board of trustees of Suffolk University.^[3]

In 1996 he married Ellen T. Murphy. She later served as the vice president at Lawrence General Hospital. They have two children together: Daniel Martin and Robert Francis.

University of Massachusetts

On May 1, 2015, the University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees unanimously elected Meehan president of the UMass System. Meehan had served as Chancellor of his alma mater University of Massachusetts Lowell.^[4][5] for eight years prior to his rise to the presidency of UMass. Trustees cited Meehan's record of achievement while serving as the Chancellor at UMass Lowell, his record of public service throughout his career, "and his ability to communicate and to inspire as being among the reasons for selecting him as the university’s 27th president." ^[6] Meehan is the first UMass undergraduate alumnus to serve as President of the five-campus, 73,000-student system. Meehan officially started his service as president on July 1, 2015.

Meehan was inaugurated at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate on November 12, 2015 where he vowed to fight for the University of Massachusetts, calling it “the most important institution in Massachusetts in the critical areas of social mobility and economic growth." ^[7] Meehan made raising money for scholarship funds the centerpiece of his inauguration. With an initial fundraising target of $1 million, the privately funded inauguration far exceeded its goals and generated a record $1.7 million for student scholarships.^[8]

In his first year of presidency, the university’s enrollment reached a record 73,744 students and UMass announced that research expenditures had risen to a high of $629 million. UMass increased its own funding of financial aid by nearly $20 million during Meehan’s first year, with spending rising from $236 million to a record $255 million, the highest ever. Additionally, the UMass Foundation, in part based on Meehan’s recommendation, voted to divest direct investments in fossil fuels from the university’s endowment, making it the first major public university in the nation to take such action.^[9]

As he began his second year as president of the university, Meehan announced the closing of his congressional campaign and directed that funds be transferred to an education foundation and that a $1 million scholarship donation be made to his alma mater, UMass Lowell.^[10]

During his years at UMass Lowell, the institution achieved record growth in enrollment, student retention and funding for research and scholarships.^[11]

During his tenure as chancellor, UMass Lowell for the first time was named a top-tier national university.^[12] It also was the top-ranked public research institution in New England for starting salary, mid-career salary and overall return on investment for graduates according to PayScale.com.^[13] Under Meehan’s leadership, UMass Lowell opened 10 new buildings over a five-year period, was named to the President’s Higher Education Honor Roll for community service and campus engagement ^[14] for six years in a row and made a successful transition to NCAA Division I athletics.^[15]

Meehan was presented with the Association of College Unions International (ACUI) 2014 President of the Year Award at the organization’s 100th anniversary celebration and conference. He was honored by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) at the annual District I program in 2012 with the Chief Executive Leadership Award.^[16][17]

Political career

Interspersed with his post-college studies, Meehan held a number of political positions. From 1978 to 1979 Meehan served on the staff to Lowell mayor Raymond F. Rourke. He was the press assistant to Representative James Shannon from 1979 to 1981 and the head research analyst for the Massachusetts Senate's joint committee on election laws from 1981 to 1984.

After completing his law degree, Meehan served as director of public affairs to the Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth and Deputy Secretary of State for Securities and Corporations from 1986 to 1990. From 1987 to 1988, Meehan was a member of the faculty of the University of Massachusetts Lowell and Harvard Law School. From 1991 to 1992, Meehan was the First Assistant District Attorney for Middlesex County, where he established an innovative “priority prosecution” policy that targeted hardened criminals.

Meehan ran for the U.S. House in the 1992 election and was elected on November 3, 1992. He took office in January 1993. Meehan is generally considered to be a political liberal. Meehan is a prominent advocate for campaign finance reform and was one of the major sponsors of Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (called the "Shays-Meehan Bill" in the House and the "McCain-Feingold Bill" in the Senate). He has also been noted for his activism on gay rights issues; for example, Meehan is the chief sponsor of the measure repealing the don't ask, don't tell policy.

On October 10, 2002, Marty Meehan was among the 81 House Democrats who voted in favor of authorizing the invasion of Iraq.^[18] In January 2005, nearly three years after the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime and as U.S. troops faced an “increasingly sophisticated insurgency in Iraq,” Meehan published a Congressional white paper ^[19] advocating that Iraqi security responsibilities be transferred to a new democratically elected government and that the U.S. develop an exit strategy to remove troops within 12 months to 18 months. During a discussion panel at the Brookings Institution,^[20] Meehan expressed concerns about the Bush administration having “no endgame in sight.” He told the panel that “it's time for Congress to reassert its role in foreign policy and to take the lead in providing an exit strategy in Iraq.”

Meehan's campaign fund was among the largest campaign accounts of any House member, with $4,829,540 cash on hand reported on October 15, 2005. This is the result of raising more money than he spent in several campaigns since his first in 1992. In 2016, after his first year as president of UMass, Meehan closed his congressional campaign signaling an end to his political career so he could focus his energies on leading the UMass system.^[21]

In the 2004 Congressional race, Meehan raised $3,170,733 and spent $459,977 of that, thus adding $2,710,756 to his cash on hand. His opponent, Tom Tierney raised $30,943 and spent $30,406. Overall, in the 2004 race, incumbents in the House of Representatives on average raised $1,122,505 compared to $192,964 for their challengers.^[22]

Meehan was mentioned as a possible candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2004, if Massachusetts' junior senator, John Kerry, had been elected to the presidency.^[23]

Meehan worked with former Marine Staff Sgt. Eric Alva and a bipartisan group of representatives to Capitol Hill to reintroduce the Military Readiness Enhancement Act, legislation that would repeal the Pentagon's "don't ask, don't tell" policy regarding gay service members.

Controversies

Meehan celebrates gaining enough votes to bring his campaign finance reform bill to the floor.

Term limits

Meehan successfully ran for the House in 1992 on a platform of reform, including a commitment to pushing through term limits for members of the House. As part of that platform, Meehan made a pledge not to serve more than four terms. On the House floor in 1995 he scolded members who might go back on their promise to limit their tenure in office. "The best test of any politicians' credibility on term limits," he said, "is whether they are willing to put their careers where their mouths are and limit their own service." Despite his pledge, Meehan again ran for Congress in the year 2000, exceeding four terms.^[24]

Post 9/11 criticism of President Bush

Meehan came under intense criticism in the days following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, when the Boston Herald reported that he criticized President Bush for not returning to Washington, D.C., sooner than he did after the attacks.^[25] Meehan was quoted as saying "I don't buy the notion Air Force One was a target ... That's just PR. That's just spin."^[26] Following that incident, Lowell police posted a guard outside Meehan's congressional district office after receiving reports of threatening phone calls. Meehan later recanted his views and said that he believed at that time that Bush had done "an excellent job."^[27] Later, both the 9/11 Commission Report, issued in 2004, and President Bush’s White House Communications director Dan Barrett acknowledged Air Force One was not a target of the attacks.^[28][29]

Wikipedia editing

An unidentified individual operating through the U.S. House of Representatives' internet connection made several favorable edits as well as removing statements declaring Meehan's original campaign platform that included a promise not to run for more than four terms. Meehan's chief of staff at the time, Matt Vogel, admitted to the press that he oversaw the edits and removal of the section that pointed out Meehan's decision not to step down from office after four terms.^[30]

Former committee assignments and caucus memberships

Retirement from Congress

On May 9, 2007, Meehan delivered an official resignation statement to the Speaker of the House, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), indicating that he would leave his post on July 1 of the same year.^[31] In response, Gov. Deval Patrick (D-MA) announced a September 4 primary and an October 16 special election to determine Meehan's successor. The eventual winner was Niki Tsongas, the widow of Paul Tsongas, one of Meehan's predecessors.

Potential United States Senate Candidate

Meehan had been mentioned as a potential candidate to succeed Ted Kennedy in the United States Senate.^[32][33] In a letter to staff and students at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, he stated,

"After careful consideration and many conversations with my family and close supporters, I have decided not to run for the U.S. Senate at this time. While I am not ruling out the possibility of seeking public office in the future, I am fortunate to be leading a remarkable university that I love, and I just don’t want to walk away."^[34]

References

External links

• Works written by or about Martin Thomas Meehan at Wikisource
• News related to Congressional staff actions prompt Wikipedia investigation at Wikinews
• President Marty Meehan, official UMass site

• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Congress 'made Wikipedia changes' Matthew Davis, BBC News, 2006-02-09

Members of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts
1st district	F Ames Dexter Goodhue Holten Sedgwick Skinner Sedgwick J Bacon Eustis Quincy Ward Jr. Mason Gorham Webster Gorham N Appleton Gorham A Lawrence Fletcher A Lawrence Winthrop N Appleton Winthrop S Eliot W Appleton Scudder TD Eliot Hall TD Eliot Buffington Crapo R Davis Randall Wright G Lawrence Treadway Heselton Conte Olver Neal
2nd district	Goodhue Foster W Lyman Sedgwick Ward Sr. W Lyman Shepard J Crowninshield Story Pickman W Reed Pickering Silsbee Barstow B Crowninshield Choate Phillips Saltonstall D King Rantoul Fay Crocker Buffington O Ames Harris Long E Morse Gillett Churchill Bowles Kaynor Granfield Clason Furcolo Boland Neal McGovern
3rd district	Gerry Bourne Coffin Lyman Mattoon Cutler Nelson Livermore White Pickering Nelson Varnum Nelson Osgood Cushing A Abbott Duncan Edmands Damrell C Adams Thomas A Rice Twichell Whiting I Pierce Field B Dean Field Ranney L Morse J Andrew Walker JR Thayer R Hoar C Washburn JA Thayer Wilder Paige F Foss Casey Philbin Drinan Donohue Early Blute McGovern N Tsongas
4th district	Sedgwick Dearborn Thatcher Wadsworth Foster L Lincoln Sr. Hastings Varnum W Richardson Dana Stearns Fuller E Everett Sa Hoar Parmenter Thompson Palfrey Thompson Sabine Walley Comins A Rice Hooper Frost J Abbott L Morse Collins O'Neil Apsley Weymouth Tirrell Mitchell Wilder Winslow Stobbs P Holmes Donohue Drinan Frank Kennedy III
5th district	Partridge Bourne Freeman L Williams T Dwight Ely Mills Lathrop Sibley J Davis L Lincoln Jr. Hudson C Allen W Appleton Burlingame W Appleton Hooper Alley Butler Gooch Banks Bowman L Morse Hayden Banks Sh Hoar Stevens Knox B Ames J Rogers E Rogers B Morse Cronin P Tsongas Shannon Atkins Meehan N Tsongas Markey Clark
6th district	Thatcher Leonard J Reed Sr. J Smith Taggart S Allen Locke Kendall Grennell Alvord Baker Ashmun G Davis Upham T Davis Alley Gooch Banks Butler Thompson Loring Stone Lovering Lodge Cogswell Moody Gardner Lufkin A Andrew G Bates W Bates Harrington Mavroules Torkildsen Tierney Moulton
7th district	Leonard Ward Sr. Leonard Bullock Bishop Mitchell Barker Baylies Turner Baylies Hulbert Shaw H Dwight S Allen Grennell Briggs J Rockwell Goodrich Banks Gooch Boutwell Brooks Esty E Hoar Tarbox Butler W Russell Stone Cogswell W Everett Barrett Roberts Phelan Maloney W Connery L Connery Lane Macdonald Markey Capuano
8th district	Grout Thatcher F Ames Otis Eustis L Williams Green Gardner Green J Reed Jr. Baylies Sampson Hobart Lathrop Bates Calhoun J Adams Mann Wentworth Knapp Train Baldwin G Hoar JMS Williams Warren Claflin Candler W Russell CH Allen Greenhalge Stevens McCall Deitrick Dallinger H Thayer Dallinger Healey Goodwin Macdonald O'Neill Kennedy II Capuano Lynch
9th district	Varnum Bishop J Dean Wheaton J Reed Jr. Folger J Reed Jr. H Dwight Briggs Jackson Hastings H Williams Hale Fowler Little Dewitt E Thayer Bailey A Walker W Washburn Crocker G Hoar W Rice T Lyman Ely Burnett Candler G Williams O'Neil Fitzgerald Conry Keliher Murray Roberts Fuller Underhill Luce R Russell Luce TH Eliot Gifford Nicholson Keith McCormack Hicks Moakley Lynch Keating
10th district	Goodhue Sewall Read Hastings Upham J Allen Brigham Wheaton Morton F Baylies Bailey HAS Dearborn W Baylies Borden H Williams Borden Burnell Grinnell Scudder Dickinson Chaffee Delano Dawes Crocker Stevens Seelye Norcross W Rice JE Russell J Walker McEttrick Atwood Barrows Naphen McNary O'Connell Curley Murray Tague Fitzgerald Tague Douglass Tinkham Herter Curtis Martin Heckler Studds Delahunt Keating
11th district	Bradbury Bartlett Cutler Stedman A Bigelow Brigham B Adams J Russell Hobart J Richardson J Adams J Reed Jr. Burnell Goodrich Trafton Dawes Chapin Robinson Whiting II Wallace Coolidge Draper Sprague Powers Sullivan Peters Tinkham Douglass Higgins Flaherty Curley Kennedy O'Neill Burke Donnelly
12th district	Dearborn I Parker Lee S Thatcher Skinner Larned Bidwell Bacon Dewey Hulbert Strong Kendall L Bigelow Baylies Hodges J Adams Robinson F Rockwell Crosby E Morse Lovering Powers Weeks Curley Gallivan McCormack Keith Studds
13th district	Wadsworth Seaver Ruggles Dowse Eustis J Reed Jr. Randall Simpkins Greene Weeks Mitchell Carter Luce Wigglesworth Burke
14th district	G Thatcher Cutts C King J Holmes Lovering E Foss Harris Gilmore Olney Frothingham Wigglesworth Martin
15th district	Wadsworth Ilsley Whitman Widgery Bradbury Whitman Greene Leach Martin Gifford
16th district	S Thatcher Cook Tallman S Davis Brown Orr Hill T Thacher Walsh Gifford
17th district	Bruce Chandler Gannett F Carr Wood J Carr Wilson Kinsley
18th district	Wilson T Rice J Parker
19th district	J Parker Conner Gage Cushman
20th district	Hubbard Parris E Lincoln
At-large	Cobb