Reynolds, Mel, 1952-

REYNOLDS, Mel, a Representative from Illinois; born in Mound Bayou, Boliver County, Miss., January 8, 1952; A.A., Chicago City College, 1972; B.A., University of Illinois, 1974; LL.B., Oxford University, 1979; M.P.A., Harvard University, 1986; assistant professor of political science, Roosevelt University; founder and former president, American Scholars Against World Hunger; executive director, Community Economic Development Education Foundation; unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination to the One Hundred First Congress in 1988 and to the One Hundred Second Congress in 1990; elected as a Democrat to the One Hundred Third and to the succeeding Congress and served until his resignation on October 1, 1995 (January 3, 1993-October 1, 1995); unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination to the One Hundred Ninth Congress in 2004; unsuccessful candidate in a special primary election for the Democratic nomination to the One Hundred Thirteenth Congress in 2013.

<p>Melvin Reynolds (born January 8, 1952) is an American politician from Illinois. A member of the Democratic Party, he served in the United States House of Representatives from 1993 to 1995. He resigned in October 1995 after a jury convicted him of sexual assault charges related to sex with an underage campaign worker.</p>

<p>Reynolds and his twin brother, Marvin Jerry Reynolds, were born in Mound Bayou, Mississippi to Reverend J. J. Reynolds and Essie Mae Prather. Reynolds moved to Chicago as a child. He received an Associate of Arts from one of the City Colleges of Chicago, and graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and from Harvard University with a M.P.A.. He also won a Rhodes Scholarship to the University of Oxford, where he attended Lincoln College and received an LL.B..</p>

<p>Before entering politics, Reynolds worked as an assistant professor of political science at Roosevelt University in Chicago, Illinois. He also founded the Community Economic Development and Education Foundation.</p>

<p>Persistent in the face of defeat, Mel Reynolds earned a seat in the 103rd Congress (1993–1995) after two unsuccessful bids against Illinois incumbent Gus Savage in the Democratic primary. Perceived by national party leaders as a standout with political promise, Reynolds received a seat on the influential Ways and Means Committee—a rare honor for a freshman Representative—during his term in Congress.</p>

<p>Mel Reynolds was born on January 8, 1952, in Mound Bayou, Mississippi, to Essie Mae and Reverend J. J. Reynolds. When he was a child, his family moved to Chicago, where he attended public schools, including Mather High School. Reynolds received an A.A. from Chicago City College in 1972, and two years later graduated with a B.A. from the University of Illinois at Champaign–Urbana. One of the first African Americans from Illinois to be selected as a Rhodes Scholar, Reynolds earned an LL.B. from Oxford University in 1979. He also completed a master’s degree in public administration at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government in 1986. While at Harvard, Reynolds met his future wife, Marisol Concepcion. The couple married in 1990 and had three children: Corean, Marisol Elizabeth, and Mel, Jr.</p>

<p>Reynolds initially worked as an assistant professor of political science at Roosevelt University in Chicago and hosted a local radio talk show. He also launched the organization American Scholars Against World Hunger to fight famine in Africa. Reynolds earned a reputation as a community activist, participating in an antidrug campaign on Chicago’s South Side and directing the Community Economic Development and Education Foundation, which provided scholarships to local students. He gained valuable political experience working on the campaigns of several unsuccessful Democratic presidential candidates, including Edward M. (Ted) Kennedy, Jesse Jackson, and Michael Dukakis. In 1987, Reynolds participated in Chicago Mayor Harold Washington’s victorious re–election campaign.</p>