Mr. Rob Henken

Mr. Rob HenkenMarquette University

Wehr Physics Hall, 484

MilwaukeeWI53201United States of Americarobert.henken@marquette.edu

Adjunct Instructor

Political Science

Rob Henken is a part-time faculty member at the Political Science Department at Marquette University.

Rob’s full-time position is Executive Director of the Milwaukee-based Richard and Ethel Herzfeld Foundation, a position he has held since July 2024. The Herzfeld Foundation has a grantmaking portfolio of about $4 million per year that supports Greater Milwaukee-based organizations and initiatives in the areas of arts and culture, education, and civic improvements.

Prior to joining the Herzfeld Foundation, Rob had a long and distinguished career in public policy. He served as the President of the Wisconsin Policy Forum – the state’s premier policy think tank – from 2008 to 2024. In that role, he authored or co-authored six reports that wonnational awards from the Governmental Research Association (GRA) and was awarded theorganization’s Gruenberg Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2025. Locally, he was honored as the 2019 Person of the Year by the Milwaukee Rotary Club and was named one of Milwaukee’s 100 most influential leaders in The Milwaukee Business Journal’s annual “Power Book” in 2012 and one of Milwaukee’s “Game Changers” by M Magazine in 2013.

Before he became Forum President, Rob worked in Milwaukee County Government for 10 years, serving as Director of Research for the County Board, Director of Health and Human Services, and Director of Administrative Services. He also has federal policy experience, working for seven years on Capitol Hill as a senior aide to two congressmen and as staff director for a House of Representatives foreign affairs subcommittee.

In addition to his roles in policymaking and analysis, Rob has prior experience in academia, serving as an adjunct associate professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s School of Architecture and Urban Planning from 2009 through 2017, where he taught transportation policy.

Education

M.A., American University

Courses Taught

POSC 4216 | Public Policy Analysis