Bill Avery is an elected member of the Nebraska Legislature

Nebraska Legislature

The Nebraska Legislature is the supreme legislative body of the State of Nebraska, in the Great Plains region of the United States. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in the City of Lincoln, Lancaster County....

 and a retired adjunct professor of political science

Political science

Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...

, specializing in international trade

International trade

International trade is the exchange of capital, goods, and services across international borders or territories. In most countries, such trade represents a significant share of gross domestic product...

 and foreign relations

Foreign policy

A country's foreign policy, also called the foreign relations policy, consists of self-interest strategies chosen by the state to safeguard its national interests and to achieve its goals within international relations milieu. The approaches are strategically employed to interact with other countries...

, from Lincoln, Nebraska

Lincoln, Nebraska

The City of Lincoln is the capital and the second-most populous city of the US state of Nebraska. Lincoln is also the county seat of Lancaster County and the home of the University of Nebraska. Lincoln's 2010 Census population was 258,379....

.

Born in Harnett County, North Carolina

Harnett County, North Carolina

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 91,025 people, 33,800 households, and 24,099 families residing in the county. The population density was 153 people per square mile . There were 38,605 housing units at an average density of 65 per square mile...

, he received his BS and M.A.

Master of Arts (postgraduate)

A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...

 from the University of Tennessee

University of Tennessee

The University of Tennessee is a public land-grant university headquartered at Knoxville, Tennessee, United States...

 and his PhD from Tulane University

Tulane University

Tulane University is a private, nonsectarian research university located in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States...

. He is a professor emeritus at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

He was elected to the Legislature in 2006 representing Nebraska's 28th legislative district. He serves on the Education Committee and the Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee, which he chairs.