Letlow, Julia, 1981-

<p>Julia Janelle Letlow (née Barnhill; born March 16, 1981) is an American politician and academic administrator serving as the U.S. Representative for Louisiana's 5th congressional district since 2021. Letlow is the first Republican woman to represent Louisiana in Congress.</p>

<p>Letlow was born Julia Janelle Barnhill on March 16, 1981, in Monroe, Louisiana. She graduated from Ouachita Christian High School. She earned her Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in speech communications from the University of Louisiana at Monroe, followed by a Doctor of Philosophy in communications from the University of South Florida in 2012. Her doctoral advisor was Jane Jorgenson. Barnhill's dissertation in 2011 was titled <i>Giving Meaning to Grief: the Role of Rituals and Stories in Coping with Sudden Family Loss</i>. She dedicated it to her brother, Jeremy, who died in an automobile collision.</p>

<p>She worked as director of education and patient safety for Tulane University School of Medicine. In 2018, she was named director of external affairs and strategic communications for the University of Louisiana at Monroe (ULM). In 2020, she was a finalist for the presidency of ULM.</p>

<p>Congresswoman Julia Letlow represents Louisiana’s 5th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives and is the state’s first Republican woman elected to Congress.</p>

Julia took office in April 2021 after receiving 65 percent of the vote in a special election to win the seat previously won by her husband Luke, who passed away from complications of COVID-19 just days before taking office. She is the first woman to represent Louisiana in the House of Representatives in 30 years.</p>

<p>Julia serves on the House Committee on Agriculture and the House Committee on Education and Labor.</p>

LETLOW, Julia, a Representative from Louisiana; born in Monroe, Ouachita Parish, La., March 16, 1981; graduated from Ouachita Christian High School, Monroe, La.; B.A., University of Louisiana, Monroe, La., 2002; M.A., University of Louisiana, Monroe, La., 2005; Ph.D., University of South Florida, Tampa, Fla., 2011; ombudsperson and special projects coordinator, University of Louisiana, Monroe, La.; director, education, resident patient safety, and quality improvement, and clinical instructor, Tulane University, New Orleans, La.; director, marketing and communications, University of Louisiana, Monroe, La.; executive director, external affairs and strategic communications, University of Louisiana, Monroe, La., 2018-2019; executive assistant to president for external affairs and community outreach, University of Louisiana, Monroe, La.; elected as a Republican to the One Hundred Seventeenth Congress, by special election, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of United States Representative-elect Luke J. Letlow (March 20, 2021-present).