Philip Sharp

Philip Riley Sharp (born July 15, 1942) is an American politician and nonprofit executive who served ten terms in the United States House of Representatives as a Democratic representative from Indiana from 1975 to 1995.

In his 1988 and 1990 congressional elections, Sharp defeated future U.S. Vice President Mike Pence.

Early life and education Sharp was born in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1942. He grew up in Elwood, Indiana. After graduating as a valedictorian from Wendell Willkie High School in 1960, he attended DePauw University in 1961. He then transferred and graduated cum laude from the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in 1964.

In 1966, he enrolled in graduate courses at Exeter College, Oxford University in 1966 before returning to Georgetown University to earn his Ph.D. in 1974. Between 1967 and in 1974, he taught political science as an assistant professor, and later associate professor, at Ball State University.

Career Between 1964 and 1969, he served as a Legislative Aide to Democratic senator Vance Hartke. His first attempts at elected office came in 1970 and 1972, when he was the Democratic candidate for Indiana's 10th congressional district.

During his years in Congress, Sharp participated in the passage of major energy legislation. As chairman of the Energy and Power Subcommittee, he played key roles in the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments and the 1992 Energy Policy Act. He was a member of the National Research Council Committee on Effectiveness and Impact of Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) Standards, which issued its major report in 2001. He also chaired the Secretary of Energy's Electric Systems Reliability Task Force, which issued its major report in 1998.

Later years Sharp went on to serve as director of the Institute of Politics at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government.

Honors Sharp received honorary degrees from DePauw University in 1986 and Ball State University in 1997.