Dawn Clark Netsch received her B.A., Phi Beta Kappa, from Northwestern in 1948, and her J.D. from Northwestern's School of Law in 1952. Active in state government since 1970, she was elected to the Illinois State Senate, serving from 1972 to 1990. Netsch was elected Comptroller of Illinois and served from 1991 to 1995. She made an unsuccessful bid for governor of Illinois in 1994. Netsch has practiced law in Washington, D.C., and Chicago, and has been a member of the Northwestern School of Law faculty since 1965.