Johanna Wanka
Johanna Wanka (née Müller, born April 1, 1951 in Rosenfeld, Torgau ) is a German politician of the CDU. She's since February 14, 2013 Federal Minister of Education and Research and will remain so in the Cabinet Merkel III. From 2000 to 2009 she was Minister of Science, Research and Culture of Brandenburg, 2010-2013 Lower Saxony Minister for Science and Culture.
Life
Johanna Wanka grew up in Rosenfeld. She attended from 1958 to 1966 the Polytechnic High School in Großtreben and then to the school in 1970, the Advanced High School in Torgau, where she learned parallel also the profession of an agricultural technician. The study of mathematics at the University of Leipzig, she graduated in 1974 with a diploma. Her thesis was entitled Spatial boundary value problems of potential theory with coupling conditions.
Johanna Wanka is married to the mathematician Gert Wanka and has two children.
Profession
In 1974, Johanna Wanka was as a research assistant at the Technical University Leuna - Merseburg, Department of Mathematics, worked. In 1980 she was solution of contact and control problems with potential theoretical means for Dr. rer. nat. doctorate. From 1985 to 1993 she was a research assistant professor at the university. In 1993, Wanka appointed Professor of Engineering Mathematics at the University of Merseburg, in which her department had risen. In March 1994, she was elected rector of their college. She held that post until her appointment as Minister in October 2000.
From 1994 to 1998 she was vice-president of the national Rectors' Conference of Saxony-Anhalt and 1995-1998 Vice-Chair of the Advisory Council for Science and Research of the State of Saxony- Anhalt.
Political career
Vanka was a member of the Free German Youth ( FDJ). She joined in 1989 at the civil rights movement of the GDR and was a founding member of the company founded in September 1989, the New Forum in Merseburg, for which she was a member of the district Merseburg also from 1990 to 1994.
In 2000 Wanka was, at that time no party affiliation, for the CDU in the Cabinet Stolpe III Minister of Science, Research and Culture of Brandenburg. This function she held until November 2009 and in 2005 was President of the Standing Conference. During her tenure in this respect the reform of German orthography was introduced. Since it was still being discussed in July 2005 that the planned for August 1 launch of the reform should take place, Wanka appealed to the Prime Minister, the new spellings introduce as planned. In addition, she criticized the cautious attitude of Bavaria and North Rhine -Westphalia and stressed as a short-term deferral was only grist to the mill of those who were opposed in principle to the formation of federalism. Half a year later, shortly after the end of her tenure as President of the Standing Conference she conceded against the Mirror: " The minister of education have long known that the spelling reform was wrong. For reasons of state it has not been withdrawn. "
Since March 2001, Vanka is a member of the CDU. Between May 2003 of June 2010 it was a member of the CDU Land Executive Brandenburg. In December 2003, Vanka was elected Chairman of the CDU district Dahme -Spreewald. At the party the CDU Brandenburg in January 2007, she was elected deputy state chairman. Following the resignation of the former state chairman Ulrich Junghanns she took office from the October 29, 2008 provisionally true and was elected by a party congress on January 17, 2009 in Potsdam, the state chairman.
From 2004 to 2010 Vanka was a member of the Landtag of Brandenburg after each feeding on the CDU state list because it could not establish itself as a direct candidate in the constituency of Dahme- Spreewald III ( Constituency 28). In the state election on 27 September 2009, she stood as leading candidate of the CDU. In this election, the CDU put though to 0.4 percentage points, but remained with a score of 19.8 percent, well third force behind the SPD ( 33 percent) and the Left Party ( 27.2 percent).
After the SPD in 2009 decided against a renewal of the coalition with the CDU and entered into a coalition with the Left, Johanna Wanka was appointed on 20 October 2009 on the CDU faction leader. This office she held until April 2010, when she resigned her seat in Parliament in Brandenburg due to their surprising appeal to Lower Saxony. Successor to the Group's presidency was Saskia Ludwig, which also succeeded on 26 June 2010 as the CDU chairwoman.
Vanka was appointed by the then Minister of Lower Saxony, Christian Wulff (CDU ) for the Lower Saxony Minister for Science and Culture in his cabinet on 27 April 2010; she broke Lutz Stratmann from this office. This office also kept Wanka in the Cabinet McAllister. The state election in 2013 resulted in a majority in favor of a red-green coalition, whereby the loss of that exerted by a CDU politician in Lower Saxony Office was foreseeable. Following the resignation of Education Minister Annette Schavan Wanka has been proposed as a successor and therefore became effective on February 13, 2013 back early as Lower Saxony's Minister. A day later, she was appointed Federal Minister and sworn in on February 21 in the Bundestag.
Cabinets
Brandenburg
- Cabinet Stolpe III
- Cabinet Platzeck I
- Cabinet Platzeck II
Lower Saxony
- Cabinet Wulff II
- Cabinet McAllister
Waistband
- Cabinet Merkel II
- Cabinet Merkel III
Awards
In September 2010, Johanna Wanka has been awarded the Ernst Ludwig Ehrlich medal for Sciences and Arts. The Jewish Begabtenförderungswerk Ernst Ludwig Ehrlich Studienwerk honored with a tribute to the use Wankas for Jewish education.
Writings
- Solution of contact and control problems with potential theoretical means. Dissertation at the Faculty of technical science and mathematics at the Technical University Leuna, Merseburg in 1980, DNB 820,370,274th
- Johanna Wanka (ed.): Proceedings of the 1st Conference of young scientists at the University of Applied Sciences Merseburg. Applied Science Conference. Shaker, Aachen, 2001, ISBN 3-8265-8356-6.