Terrel Howard Bell (November 11, 1921June 22, 1996) was the secretary of education in the cabinet of President Ronald Reagan. He was the second secretary of education, following Shirley Hufstedler.
Early life and career
Bell was born in Lava Hot Springs, Idaho, on November 11, 1921; at age eight, his father died. Bell graduated from Lava Hot Springs High School and the Albion State Normal School in 1946. After this he served as a school superintendent of various schools in Idaho and Wyoming.
Bell spent much of his professional career in Utah. He served as a sergeant in the Marine Corps during World War II and returned to Idaho to get his education. After earning a B.A. in Albion in 1946, Bell started a career as a high school teacher and bus driver.
He earned an MA from the University of Idaho in Moscow in 1954, and a PhD in education from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City in 1961. Bell also served as Utah's Commissioner of Higher Education and the superintendent of Weber School District in Utah from 1958 to 1962. He taught at Utah State University beginning in 1962, becoming head of the Department of Educational Administration.
National Commissioner of Education
Bell served as the United States commissioner of education (prior to the creation of the cabinet position) under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford from 1974 to 1976.
U.S. Secretary of Education
Appointed to the Reagan cabinet in 1981, Bell was expected to preside over the dismantling of the Department of Education,
During his tenure, the issue of asbestos in public schools was a major topic of concern.
Resignation and later life
Though education's importance was highlighted by the reform drive, Reagan continued to try to reduce funding at the Department of Education. Bell served for Reagan's first term, resigning effective December 31, 1984. Bell was succeeded by Bill Bennett and returned to Salt Lake City to join the faculty at the University of Utah. In 1988, he published his memoir entitled The Thirteenth Man: A Reagan Cabinet Memoir.
Bell published seven other books during his career, covering topics such as improving child intellectual development and reforming the educational process. His last book in 1993, written with his business partner Dr. Donna Elmquist at his nonprofit company T.H. Bell and Associates in Salt Lake City, made new recommendations for improving the U.S. education system. He believed that, "there are three things to emphasize in teaching: The first is motivation, the second is motivation, and the third is (you guessed it) motivation."
Bell was inducted into Idaho's Hall of Fame in 1987.
Personal
Bell married Josephine Samuels in 1950. Their son, Jon, died in infancy. Bell divorced Josephine in 1956. He married his second wife, Betty Ruth Fitzgerald in <!--August 1-->1957, and they had four sons: Mark F., Warren T., Glenn M., and Peter F. Bell.
Death
Bell died in his sleep at age 74 of pulmonary fibrosis at his home in Salt Lake City <!--on June 22,-->