Marilyn Lenore Howard (April 18, 1939July 13, 2020) was an American politician from Idaho who served as the 23rd Idaho Superintendent of

Public Instruction In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...

from 1999 to 2007. She is the most recent member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

to have held statewide office in Idaho.

Early life

Marilyn Lenore Howard was born on April 18, 1939, in Mackay, Idaho. In 1960, Howard graduated with a

bachelor's A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ye ...

degree in education from the

University of Idaho The University of Idaho (U of I, or UIdaho) is a public land-grant research university in Moscow, Idaho. It is the state's land-grant and primary research university,, and the lead university in the Idaho Space Grant Consortium. The University ...

and later with a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in 1966. In 1986, she graduated with a

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...

in education from

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

. She completed postgraduate work at

Idaho State University , mottoeng = "The truth will set you free" , established = , former_names = Academy of Idaho(1901–1915)Idaho Technical Institute(1915–1927)University of Idaho—Southern Branch(1927–1947)Idaho State ...

Career

Education

In 1960, Howard became a history and language arts teacher in

Lewiston, Idaho Lewiston is a city and the county seat of Nez Perce County, Idaho, United States, in the state's north central region. It is the second-largest city in the northern Idaho region, behind Coeur d'Alene, and ninth-largest in the state. Lewiston is ...

. In 1988, she became the principal of the West Park Elementary School in

Moscow, Idaho Moscow ( ) is a city in North Central Idaho, United States. Located along the state border with Washington, it had a population of 25,435 at the 2020 census. The county seat and largest city of Latah County, Moscow is the home of the Universit ...

. In 1992, she became the supervisor of the Moscow school district's developmental preschool.

Superintendent of Public Instruction

In 1997, Howard announced that she would seek the Democratic nomination for Idaho Superintendent of Public Instruction and defeated Wally Hedrick in the Democratic primary. In the general election she defeated incumbent Republican Superintendent Anne C. Fox. On January 29, 2002, she announced that she would seek reelection and won in the general election after defeating Republican nominee

Tom Luna Thomas Luna (born 1958)Superintendent of Public ...

. In 2000, Howard was listed as the 26th most influential Idahoan. In 2002, she was lsited as the 12th most influential Idahoan. During her tenure she and Governor Dirk Kempthorne attempted to create a position in the state Department of Education to oversee the education of Native American students, but the Idaho Legislature voted against it. However, the position would be later created by Tom Luna in 2007. In December 2006, she was criticized for distributing $120,098 in merit bonuses to 135 of her employees. On October 25, 2005, Howard announced that she would not seek reelection. When she left office in 2007 she was the last member of the Democratic Party to hold statewide office in Idaho.

Later life

In 2006, Howard underwent surgery for

breast cancer Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a re ...

. On July 13, 2020, Howard died in Eagle, Idaho, at age 81.

Electoral history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Howard, Marilyn 1939 births 2020 deaths 20th-century American politicians 21st-century American politicians Brigham Young University alumni Idaho Democrats Idaho State University alumni People from Custer County, Idaho Superintendents of Public Instruction of Idaho University of Idaho alumni Women in Idaho politics 21st-century American women politicians