Oveta Culp Hobby

Oveta Culp Hobby

Oveta Culp Hobby (born January 19, 1905 in Killeen , Texas , † August 16, 1995 in Houston , Texas) was an American politician and the first Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare in the United States.

Life before politics

She attended various public schools and graduated from Temple High School in Austin . She then studied for two years at Mary Hardin Baylor College in Belton , where she also gave rhetoric courses. In 1931 she married William P. Hobby , a friend of her father's, who had served as governor of Texas between 1917 and 1921 . She had two children with him. Their son William later became Lieutenant Governor of Texas.

Career

She started working for the Texan Parliament at the age of 20. From 1928 she planned election campaigns for democratic politicians. In the early 1940s she became head of the Woman's Interest Section in the War Department 's PR office. After the war she worked for several organizations such as the Red Cross and the American Cancer Society .

On April 11, 1953, she was appointed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower to serve as Minister of Health, Education and Welfare in his cabinet . She was the first woman in a ministerial office. One of their first official acts was the introduction of the polio vaccination. The expansion of medical facilities such as hospitals, nursing homes and rehabilitation centers was important to her. A social security plan was also developed during her tenure. Due to the high birth rate in the previous years ( baby boom ), she had to build new schools. Since her husband was seriously ill, she resigned from office in July 1955.

Next life

Many universities have awarded Oveta Hobby an honorary doctorate. She was also appointed to the board of various institutions. The library of the college in her hometown of Killeen was named after the former minister, which meant a lot to her. In 1995 she died in Houston and was buried in the local Glenwood Cemetery .

Web links

• Oveta Culp Hobby Biographical Sketch ( Memento from April 21, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
• Oveta Culp Hobby in Miller Center of Public Affairs of the University of Virginia (English)

• Oveta Culp Hobby in the database of Find a Grave (English)