Efraín Sánchez Hidalgo (April 29, 1918 – 1974) was an educator, college professor and a former Puerto Rico Secretary of Education.

Early day and military service

He was born in Moca, Puerto Rico on April 29, 1918. His parents were Zenón Sánchez Avilés and Pelegrina Hidalgo Pérez. He studied at the Elementary School in Moca and High School in Aguadilla. Served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

from 1941 to 1946, assigned to the

65th Infantry Regiment The 65th Infantry Regiment, nicknamed "The Borinqueneers" during the Korean War for the original Taíno Indian name for Puerto Rico (Borinquen), is a Puerto Rican regiment of the United States Army. The regiment's motto is ''Honor et Fidelita ...

. In the Maritime Alps as a Captain he commanded in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

the first all-Puerto Rican military unit that engaged in combat with the enemy. He was decorated with a Bronze Star Medal for he's duty in combat.

Education career

He obtained a Bachelor of Arts in education Magna Laude, and a PhD in psychology at the

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

. He devotes his life to education, dedicating 31 1/2 years to teaching. In his "role" as a professor at the

University of Puerto Rico The University of Puerto Rico ( es, Universidad de Puerto Rico, UPR) is the main public university system in the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It is a government-owned corporation with 11 campuses and approximately 58,000 students and 5,3 ...

and other universities outside of Puerto Rico, Dr. Sánchez Hidalgo taught, among others, the following courses: Educational Psychology, Educational Sociology, Child Psychology, Adolescent Psychology, and Old Age Psychology. In 1971 he was selected by Outstanding Educators of America as a Distinguished Educator. Was appointed Secretary of Education of Puerto Rico from 1957 til 1960. He retired from the university classrooms on February 4, 1974.

Legacy

A middle school in Moca, Puerto Rico was named after him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sánchez Hidalgo, Efraín 1918 births 1974 deaths Columbia University alumni People from Moca, Puerto Rico Puerto Rican educators Puerto Rican Army personnel Secretaries of Education of Puerto Rico University of Puerto Rico faculty United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army officers