Shirley Galloway

Shirley Galloway (born 20 August 1934) is an American politician who served in the Washington House of Representatives from the 49th district from 1979 to 1985 and in the Washington State Senate from the 17th district from 1996 to 1997.

Shirley Galloway was born on August 20, 1934, in Postell, Arkansas to a sharecropper family. She attended Clark College, Vancouver, Washington, graduating with an Associate of Applied Science degree. Later, she received a Bachelor of Arts degree from The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. She had also attended the Washington State University in Pullman, Washington.

After serving as co-president of the P.T.A. and working with the school system for many years, Galloway was appointed to the Vancouver School Board. After seven years of service on the board, in 1977, she was elected president of the Washington School Directors Association.

In 1978, a vacant House seat and the desire to improve state policy prompted Galloway to run as a candidate for the office. Uninvolved in partisan politics before her campaign, she chose the Democratic Party and led a campaign that stressed state funding of public education. She represented the 49th district of Vancouver, Washington, in the House of Representatives from 1979 to 1985.

In 1984, she ran for Superintendent of Public Instruction but lost to Frank Buster Brouillet.

On August 6, 1996, Galloway was appointed to serve Senator Dean Sutherland's unexpired term. She ran for this seat in 1996 and lost to Don Benton.

Because of her keen interest in education and school funding, she sought positions on House Education and Revenue committees and expressed a commitment to refining the Basic Education Act. She served as chairwoman of the Education Committee.

In addition to her legislative duties, Galloway served on the State Council on Child Abuse, a number of volunteer community boards and committees, and was a past co-chair of Elected Washington Women. 

• The Clark County Council for the Homeless, director
• Camp Fire Girls, district director
• Vancouver Parks, interagency day camp director
• Salvation Army Board
• Citizens for Good Schools
• School Management Task Force
• Parent Booster Club

• HOSTS
• SWARF
• Elected Washington Women, co-chair
• Business for Arts Committees
• League of Women Voters
• Delta Kappa Gamma
• First Federal Advisory Committee

• Women of Achievement Honoree, YWCA, 1994
• All-State Board Award
• Outstanding Service Award
• PTA Golden Acorn Award
• Waken Luther Halsey Gulick & Creative Programming Awards, Camp Fire Girls

Galloway is married to her husband, Wayne. The family resides in Vancouver, Washington, with their five children.