Sir Ben Bowen Thomas (18 May 1899 – 26 July 1977) was a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

civil servant and university President. He served as

Permanent Secretary A permanent secretary (also known as a principal secretary) is the most senior Civil Service (United Kingdom), civil servant of a department or Ministry (government department), ministry charged with running the department or ministry's day-to-day ...

to the Welsh Department of the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

from 1945 to 1963, and was President of the

University of Wales, Aberystwyth , mottoeng = A world without knowledge is no world at all , established = 1872 (as ''The University College of Wales'') , former_names = University of Wales, Aberystwyth , type = Public , endowment = ...

from 1964 to 1975. In June 1977 Thomas was awarded an Honorary Degree from the Open University as Doctor of the University. Thomas was born in 1899 in

Ystrad Ystrad (also known as Ystrad Rhondda or Ystrad-Rhondda) is a village and community (and electoral ward) in the Rhondda Fawr valley, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. Description As a community and ward Ystrad contains the neighbouring district of Gelli ...

Rhondda Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley ( cy, Cwm Rhondda ), is a former coalmining area in South Wales, historically in the county of Glamorgan. It takes its name from the River Rhondda, and embraces two valleys – the larger Rhondda Fawr valley ('' ...

, and was educated at

Grammar School, the

University College of Wales, Aberystwyth , mottoeng = A world without knowledge is no world at all , established = 1872 (as ''The University College of Wales'') , former_names = University of Wales, Aberystwyth , type = Public , endowment = ...

and

Jesus College, Oxford Jesus College (in full: Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeth's Foundation) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship St ...

. Influenced by the adult education movement, he spent five years as a university tutorial class lecturer before becoming the first warden of

Coleg Harlech Coleg Harlech was a residential adult education college for mature students in Harlech, Gwynedd, later on part of Adult Learning Wales - Addysg Oedolion Cymru. History It was Wales' only long-term, mature-student residential education colleg ...

when it was founded by Dr Thomas Jones in 1927. He remained there until 1940, when he moved to the Ministry of Labour and then the Ministry of Education. Thomas was President of the London Welsh Trust, which runs the

London Welsh Centre The London Welsh Centre ( cy, Canolfan Cymry Llundain) (founded as the Young Wales Association in 1920) is a community and arts centre on Gray's Inn Road, in the London Borough of Camden. The centre is owned and run by the London Welsh Trust. T ...

Gray's Inn Road Gray's Inn Road (or Grays Inn Road) is an important road in the Bloomsbury district of Central London, in the London Borough of Camden. The road begins at the City of London boundary, where it bisects High Holborn, and ends at King's Cross and ...

, from 1953 until 1955. He was also involved with the work of

Unesco The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

, becoming a member of its executive board and later chairman (1958–1960). During his time at the Ministry of Education, he worked for improved standards in Welsh schools and for

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language family, Celtic language of the Brittonic languages, Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut P ...

tuition (he was a fluent Welsh speaker). He retired from the civil service in 1963, becoming president of the

in 1964 and serving until 1975 and President of the

Aberystwyth Old Students' Association Aberystwyth Old Students' Association ( cy, Cymdeithas y Cyn-Fyfyrwyr Aberystwyth), founded in 1892, is Aberystwyth University's alumni association and is one of the oldest such associations in the United Kingdom. It currently has more than 9,50 ...

in 1968–69. He was also chairman of the

Baptist Union of Wales The Baptist Union of Wales (Undeb Bedyddwyr Cymru) is a fellowship of Baptist churches in Wales. History The General Baptist minister Hugh Evans was one of the first Baptists to preach in Wales around 1646, in the parishes of Llan-hir, Cefnllys, ...

(1966–1967). Apart from his

knighthood A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

awarded in the 1950 King's Birthday Honours List, he was also awarded an honorary doctorate by the

University of Wales The University of Wales (Welsh language, Welsh: ''Prifysgol Cymru'') is a confederal university based in Cardiff, Wales. Founded by royal charter in 1893 as a federal university with three constituent colleges – Aberystwyth, Bangor and Cardiff � ...

and an Honorary

Fellowship A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

by Jesus College. He died on 26 July 1977 in

Bangor, Gwynedd Bangor (; ) is a cathedral city and community A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Ben Bowen 1899 births 1977 deaths Welsh civil servants Alumni of Aberystwyth University Aberystwyth Old Students' Association Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford Academics of Aberystwyth University Knights Bachelor People from Ystrad Civil servants in the Department of Education (United Kingdom)