Mayor's Biography

Mayor Dean E. Jessup of the City of Lawrence is serving his first elected office as the sixth Mayor of this growing city of over 46,000.  Mayor Jessup and his wife Pam have both been involved in various volunteer leadership positions in Lawrence over the past 20+ years including the Fire Merit Commission, Community Development Corporation, Board of Zoning Appeals and active members Geist Christian Church.  Mayor Jessup believes that effective local leadership begins by listening to the hopes and dreams of his neighbors and communicates his response by his actions that help others. 

Mayor Jessup is and has been focused from his first day in office on the attraction of new good paying jobs and the support of existing local businesses that are the anchors to our high performing community.  Mayor Jessup knows how very important listening and acting on good ideas can be as he successfully managed his own small business for 25 years.  He knows that a growing city and its businesses must be served by a high quality local school system and he recognizes that Lawrence schools measure up near the top and are ranked as some of the state of Indiana’s best.

Mayor Jessup believes strongly in the diversity of Lawrence as one of its major assets and he knows that as the city grows and as Lawrence neighbors become more involved with each other the fabric of what holds the city together becomes even healthier.  He believes too in a city filled with faith and Lawrence’s diverse places of worship welcome all interests and build community confidence.

He is fond of the many wonderful parks throughout the city and knows that open green space gives comfort to all.  Mayor Jessup is a major advocate for youth sports (baseball, basketball, soccer, football and many others) and those sports give special attention to the city’s quest to improve and maintain a place of health.

Lawrence is many things to its growing population but more than anything else Mayor Jessup believes Lawrence will continue to be a place that more and more will proudly call home by the collective effort of working together.