Dave grew up in Sioux City, where he attended East High School. After graduation, Dave attended Iowa State University, where he earned a Bachelor’s and a Master’s Degree. Dave then went on to earn a PhD from the University of California, Davis. In 1982, Dave moved back to Iowa and became a teacher at Cornell College in Mt. Vernon. Today, Dave has the honor to serve as a Professor Emeritus at Cornell College.

Dave and his wife Terry, a retired school teacher after 35 years, are the proud parents of four grown children. Jennifer, a graduate of Beloit College, earned her Masters in Library Science at the University of Wisconsin, Madison and now works for a library software company in San Francisco. Sarah, a graduate of Kirkwood Community College, is now a nurse in Iowa City. Marcos Melendez III, Terry’s son, and his wife Michelle are both Naval Academy graduates (class of 2000) and are Majors in the United States Marine Corps assigned to the Pentagon. Madeleine Melendez, Terry’s daughter, attended Ellsworth Community College in Iowa Falls and now resides in Springfield, Missouri. Dave and Terry are also the proud grandparents of three grandchildren.

Dave is currently serving his fourth term in the United States House of Representatives. He represents Iowa’s Second Congressional District which encompasses much of Eastern and Southern Iowa. Since being elected by the Second District, Dave has been a relentless advocate for Iowans, addressing critical issues that are facing Iowa families. As a member of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Dave is committed to job creation, growing our middle class by ensuring that our children receive a first-class education, ensuring higher education is available to all those who wish to pursue it, and focusing on training for Iowa workers. He is also the co-chair of the bipartisan Rural Education Caucus, which focuses on the education of our kids receive in rural areas.

Dave’s priority on the House Armed Services Committee is to ensure that our troops have the training and equipment necessary to safely complete their missions, that our military families receive the support they deserve, and that our nation’s veterans are served by a grateful nation with the same dignity and honor with which they served our country. He has worked tirelessly in support of the Iowa National Guard to improve training facilities, invest in equipment, and ensure they receive the benefits they and their families deserve. He is the Army National Guard Vice Chair of the National Guard and Reserve Component Caucus, which advocates for the National Guard and Reserve in Congress, and was awarded the Enlisted Association of the National Guard’s G.V. “Sonny” Montgomery Eagle Award in March 2011 for his work to increase education benefits for National Guard Soldiers and Airmen.

He is also a member of the Center Aisle Caucus; the Congressional Caucus to Fight and Control Methamphetamine; the Congressional Rural Caucus; the Congressional Caucus for Women’s Issues; the Congressional Military Families Caucus; the House Manufacturing Caucus; and the Congressional Missing and Exploited Children’s Caucus, amongst others.