Terrel H. Bell

Read our coverage of the second U.S. Secretary of Education, who served from 1981 to 1984. We are no longer updating this page.

Explainer

President Ronald Reagan is flanked by Education Secretary Terrel Bell, left, White House Policy director, during a meeting in the Cabinet Room in Washington, Feb. 23, 1984 where they discussed school discipline.
Terrel H. Bell, Second U.S. Education Secretary: Biography and Achievements
Background and highlights of Terrel H. Bell's tenure as the second U.S. Secretary of Education.
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President Ronald Reagan is flanked by Education Secretary Terrel Bell, left, White House Policy director, during a meeting in the Cabinet Room in Washington, Feb. 23, 1984 where they discussed school discipline.
President Ronald Reagan is flanked by Education Secretary Terrel Bell, left, White House Policy director, during a meeting in the Cabinet Room in Washington, Feb. 23, 1984 where they discussed school discipline.
AP/AP
Federal Terrel Bell, Known for Defending Federal Role in Education, Dies
Terrel Bell's school-improvement message elevated him from obscurity in the Reagan administration to one of its most unlikely stars.
Robert C. Johnston, July 10, 1996
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7 min read
School Choice & Charters Opinion The Charter-School Plus
Former U.S. Secretary of Education Terrel H. Bell writes about the charter school movement.
Terrel H. Bell, March 15, 1995
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5 min read
President Ronald Reagan is flanked by Education Secretary Terrel Bell, left, White House Policy director, during a meeting in the Cabinet Room in Washington, Feb. 23, 1984 where they discussed school discipline.
President Ronald Reagan is flanked by Education Secretary Terrel Bell, left, White House Policy director, during a meeting in the Cabinet Room in Washington, Feb. 23, 1984 where they discussed school discipline.
AP/AP
Federal Bell Promotes His Own Alternative to America 2000
Terrel H. Bell thinks the Bush Administration's strategy for revitalizing American education focuses too narrowly on long-term planning.
Julie A. Miller, September 4, 1991
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3 min read
Education Bell Challenges U.S. To Put Learning First
Washington--Until Americans value academic achievement more than athletic prowess, education reform cannot succeed, former Secretary of Education Terrel H. Bell warned at a Jan. 22 press conference here that included an appeal to the next President to lead the effort to create a "learning society."

"We need a change in attitude and in the priorities of our people," Mr. Bell said. "We need to become more education-conscious and learning-oriented, and that's where I think our leaders can help us."

February 3, 1988
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2 min read
Education Federal File
Former Secretaries of Education are not exactly white-hot properties in the product- endorsement arena, and you are not likely to see Terrel H. Bell behind the wheel of a Chevrolet in a television commercial any time soon.

But Mr. Bell has made some connections with education-related businesses, and he has lent his likeness to Sylvan Learning Centers for advertisements that he says will run in several professional publications.

December 2, 1987
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1 min read
Education Reporter's Notebook: Former E.D. Secretary Urges More Federal Aid for Brightest Children
Former U.S. Secretary of Education Terrel H. Bell, who presided over the dismantling of the federal office for gifted and talented education, urged here that a massive effort at the national level be undertaken to identify gifted students and provide services for them.
Robert Rothman, September 16, 1987
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3 min read
President Ronald Reagan is flanked by Education Secretary Terrel Bell, left, White House Policy director, during a meeting in the Cabinet Room in Washington, Feb. 23, 1984 where they discussed school discipline.
President Ronald Reagan is flanked by Education Secretary Terrel Bell, left, White House Policy director, during a meeting in the Cabinet Room in Washington, Feb. 23, 1984 where they discussed school discipline.
AP/AP
Federal Bell Bids Washington Farewell; Will Return to Utah, Academe
Secretary of Education Terrel H. Bell ended months of speculation about his future by announcing he would resign his post effective Dec. 31.
Tom Mirga, November 14, 1984
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7 min read
Education Federal File: Rumor Control; Fly Me To The Moon, Cont.
Will Secretary of Education Terrel H. Bell submit his resignation shortly after this week's Presidential election? The New York Times says so, but a high ranking Education Department official says that according to the prevailing rumor at 400 Maryland Ave. S.W., the answer is "no."

An item in the Times's "Washington Talk" column last Friday, citing unnamed Administration sources, reported that Mr. Bell will be among the first Cabinet members to step down following the election. The leading candidates to replace him, according to the Times's sources, are John R. Silber, the president of Boston University, and William J. Bennett, chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

November 7, 1984
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2 min read
U.S. President Ronald Reagan addresses a meeting of teachers and administrators, Monday, August 27, 1984 in Washington from outstanding secondary schools across the nation where he announced that he was directing NASA to begin search for a school teacher to be the first citizen in space aboard a space shuttle. From left are: unidentified person; Undersecretary of Education Gary Jones; Secretary of Education Terrel Bell and Reagan.
U.S. President Ronald Reagan addresses a meeting of teachers and administrators, Monday, August 27, 1984 in Washington from outstanding secondary schools across the nation where he announced that he was directing NASA to begin search for a school teacher to be the first citizen in space aboard a space shuttle. From left are: unidentified person; Undersecretary of Education Gary Jones; Secretary of Education Terrel Bell and Reagan.
Scott Applewhite/AP
Federal One Year After 'Rising Tide' Report, Bell Sees a 'Tidal Wave' of Reform
President Reagan and Secretary of Education Terrel H. Bell feted the first anniversary of the now-widely-cited "A Nation At Risk" report.
Thomas Toch, May 16, 1984
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3 min read
Education Federal File: 'Dumb' Bell?; Forgotten Battle; Commission Clampdown?

Secretary of Education Terrel H. Bell told a group of state education officials in Washington last week that it was probably not smart of him to make reference to the "dumbing down" of American textbooks in a recent speech.
April 4, 1984
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2 min read
Education Bell Backs Targeting of Chapter 2 Funds to Needy
Secretary of Education Terrel H. Bell told a group of urban educators last week that he backs the concept of targeting Chapter 2 block grants to areas enrolling a disproportionate number of "high-cost" children, but that the Office of Management and Budget has blocked his efforts to do so.
Tom Mirga, March 28, 1984
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2 min read
Education Lawmakers Quiz Secretary Bell On Proposed Chapter 2 Budget Hike
Hearings before a Senate appropriations subcommittee on the Education Department's proposed fiscal 1985 budget began last week with Secretary of Education Terrel H. Bell restating the Administration's proposition that a significant increase in Chapter 2 education block grants is the best way to bolster the states' education-reform efforts.
Alex Heard, March 21, 1984
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3 min read
Education Bell Urges More Attention to Role of Home in Schools' Success
Secretary of Education Terrel H. Bell told a group of 250 education leaders last Tuesday that the importance of the home environment in achieving educational excellence has been "virtually ignored" in most of the discussion and debate about student achievement during the last year.
Cindy Currence, March 14, 1984
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3 min read
Education Bell Proposes Rules for States Seeking Bonds To Back Loans
Secretary of Education Terrel H. Bell has proposed new rules to govern requests from states seeking federal approval to issue tax-exempt bonds to finance student loans.
Sheppard Ranbom, February 29, 1984
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2 min read
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