Herman E. Hendrix

Herman Elbert Hendrix (born April 8, 1880 in the German Empire , † April 18, 1948 in Mesa , Arizona ) was an American stonemason , teacher and politician ( Democratic Party ).

Career

Hermann Elbert Hendrix, son of Elbert Hendrix and his wife Mauna née Bauman, was born in the German Empire in 1880. The family immigrated to the United States in 1881 . The naturalization of him and his father was made in 1885. Hendrix graduated in 1896 from high school in Blue Earth ( Minnesota ). After that he worked as a stonemason for his father for a while. Hendrix attended North Central College in Naperville ( Illinois ), where he earned two degrees in 1901, a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Philosophy .

From 1901 to 1902 he taught science, German and mathematics at the high school in St. Peter , the administrative seat of Nicollet County, Minnesota. Hendrix had from 1907 to 1908 160  Acres land in McClusky in Sheridan County ( North Dakota ). During this time he and his wife taught in a one-class school. Hendrix then moved to Chicago, Illinois, and taught in private schools there. In 1909 he graduated from Erie College of Law with a law degree . Hendrix then moved to Everett , the county seat of Snohomish County ( Washington ). There he worked from 1909 to 1917 as Superintendent of Schools . Hendrix settled in Arizona in 1917 . In the following two years he worked there as Superintendent of Schools in Miami ( Gila County ). He then taught at the Northern Arizona Normal School in Flagstaff ( Coconino County ). Hendrix was director of the Student Teaching Program in the academic year 1919/1920 . From 1920 to 1931 he then served as Superintendent at Mesa Union High School and at the same time as Superintendent of Schools in the City of Mesa. Eventually a court ruling forced him to resign from one of the positions. He served as Superintendent of Schools in the City of Mesa until January 1, 1933, when he became Superintendent of Public Instruction of Arizona. While serving as Superintendent of Schools in the City of Mesa, he received his Masters of Arts from Stanford University . His thesis looked at the tests and test results at certain schools in Arizona. Hendrix received his Ph.D. in 1929. in School Administration from New York University . This made him the first person with a doctorate in school administration to hold the post of Superintendent of Public Instruction. In addition, he was also a faculty member from Arizona State Teachers College in Tempe ( Maricopa County ).

Hendrix was a regular contributor to the Arizona Teacher and Home Journal and other Arizona magazines between World War I and his election as Superintendent of Public Instruction of Arizona.

From 1933 to 1941 Hendrix held the post of Superintendent of Public Instruction of Arizona. He was elected for his first two-year term in 1932 and re-elected three times thereafter. In 1940 he renounced a further re-election and justified it as follows:

"For personal reasons - health and physical - I have decided not to seek re-election."

"For personal reasons - health and physical - I have decided not to seek re-election."

His official work was overshadowed by the global economic crisis. As Superintendent of Public Instruction of Arizona, he established almost the entire staff of the Department of Education. Hendrix appointed a structural engineer, a curriculum director , a research director, a test and measurement director, a certification director, and an accountant. He followed up the work of Elsie Toles and initiated a nationwide comprehensive testing program for elementary schools with its own staff to run this program across the country. He also organized conferences bringing together educators, elementary and secondary school teachers, and county superintendents for advice and direction in curriculum development. Hendrix was committed to and actively supported the development of adult education. He firmly believed that education is a continuous process over a person's entire life. In this context he was particularly interested in vocational training. Therefore, he filled the post of State Director of Vocational Education. Because of the global economic crisis, he established a new system of records for the state and a new school funding system. As a result, he was able to reduce the costs of his departments and cut the per capita ratio in public schools from $ 25 to  $ 20. Hendrix advocated an elementary foundation plan in the state that has since been endorsed by other Superintendent of Public Instructions.

On January 30, 1941, he married in Lordsburg , the administrative seat of Hidalgo County ( New Mexico ), Miss Ruth E. Oelke, the former Supervisor of Homemaking Education in the Department of Vocational Education. After their wedding, the couple returned to Phoenix, Arizona. In the following years he moved back to Mesa, where he died in 1948. He was buried there in the city cemetery.

literature

• Bury, John Charles: The Historical Role Of Arizona's Superintendent Of Public Instruction , Volume 2, Northern Arizona University, December 1974, pp. 373-405 (Alternative date of death: April 19, 1948)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} Herman E. Hendrix in the Find a Grave database . Retrieved January 3, 2017.
2. ↑ ^{a b c d} Hendrix - wedding , Arizona Republic, February 2, 1941, p. 2
3. ↑ Herman E. Hendrix on the ElectionsInfo website
4. ^ Bury, John Charles: The Historical Role Of Arizona's Superintendent Of Public Instruction , Volume 2, Northern Arizona University, Dec. 1974, p. 401