John M. Agrey Award
2008 Recipient
Mark Andrews
Mark Andrews served as U.S. senator from North Dakota from 1981 to 1987, after serving as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1963 to 1981. During that time he was one of the very few working farmers serving in the U.S. Congress. He served on the appropriations committee and appropriations subcommittee on agriculture in both the House and Senate, on the Senate budget and agriculture committees, and chaired the Senate select committee on Indian Affairs. As a senator he was a member of the U.S./Soviet Congressional Study Group, participated in NATO conferences in Brussels and London, and was a guest lecturer at the National War College.
Andrews was a legislative leader in the development of the nation's domestic synthetic fuels industry and a pioneer in energy research and development. As chairman of the transportation appropriations subcommittee, he established a national reputation for reducing transportation costs for the benefit of consumers and shippers and helped to modernize the nation's airports, transit and highway systems.
An NDSU agriculture graduate, he also received an honorary doctoral degree from NDSU in 1978. Following his decades of public service, Andrews established a consulting firm in Washington and has served on corporate boards including Tenneco and Nodak Mutual Insurance.