President

Hans Zeiger

Hans Zeiger is the president of the Jack Miller Center, a national non-profit organization that works with civic educators, scholars, and citizens to advance the teaching of the American political tradition.

He comes to the Jack Miller Center with a background in state and local elected service, and has written and spoken extensively on topics related to American history and civics.

Hans previously spent a decade in the Washington State legislature, including service as chair of the Senate Early Learning and K-12 Education Committee and ranking member on the House Higher Education Committee. He gained a reputation as a bipartisan collaborator, being named by the National Institute for Civil Discourse as co-recipient of the Gabrielle Giffords Award for Civility in State Governance in 2015. Following his legislative service, Hans was a member of the County Council for Pierce County, Washington State’s second largest county.

Hans led the Chapman Center for Citizen Leadership at the Seattle-based Discovery Institute from 2012 to 2020. He was an adjunct professor of political science at Seattle Pacific University. He was also a Leadership Fellow of the Henry M. Jackson Foundation and a Rodel Fellow of the Aspen Institute.

He previously served as a public affairs officer in the Washington Air National Guard. He deployed in support of Operation ALLIES WELCOME, taking part in the resettlement of Afghan refugees in 2021.

Hans was also a trustee of the Washington State Historical Society and chaired the Washington State Legislative Oral History Committee. He has written widely on Pacific Northwest history, and his writings on public policy, history, and civil society have appeared in the Seattle Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, San Francisco Chronicle, Front Porch Republic, Real Clear Policy, Philanthropy Daily, Strong Towns, American Legion magazine, Columbia magazine, and HistoryLink.

Hans holds a bachelor’s degree from Hillsdale College and a master’s in public policy from Pepperdine University. He also studied American politics at Claremont Graduate University. He and his wife Erin have two daughters.