 This 1983: Doomsday page is a Proposal.
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Overview[]
Terrel Howard Bell was the 2nd Secretary of Education of the United States, and was the incumbent in this position on Doomsday. Having risen from the roles of high school teacher and bus driver, Bell found himself leading America's federal Department of Education. Then Doomsday struck, and his story took some even more unexpected turns.
Pre-Doomsday[]
Terrel Howard Bell was born in Lava Hot Springs, Idaho in 1921. Bell served in the US Marine Corps during World War II, rising to the rank of Sergeant. After the war, Bell attended the University of Idaho and the University of Utah, attaining a Ph.D in Education. Bell then served as a high school teacher and bus driver.
Bell later served as Utah's Commissioner of Higher Education and the superintendent of Weber School District in Utah from 1958 to 1962. This brought him to the attention of Federal officials, and Bell was hired as the United States Commissioner of Education (prior to the creation of the Federal Department of Education) under Presidents Nixon and Ford during the mid-1970's
After winning the election of 1980, Ronald Reagan appointed Bell to be the 2nd Secretary of Education. Bell immediately stood out among the rest of Washington: a humble man, Bell packed his things into a U-Haul and drove himself to Washington DC when it was time to move, in stark contrast to the style of many government officials.
Bell had been expected to preside over the dismantling of the federal Department of Education, as many thought the task of education should be kept local. However, in 1981, Bell convinced President Reagan to instead appoint a Federal commission to study the challenges facing the American educational system and propose solutions. The result was 1983's groundbreaking report, A Nation at Risk. Bell was eager to implement the proposed ideas to shore up the nation's schools.
But fate had other plans.
Doomsday[]
Bell was relaxing in his home in the Metro DC area on the evening of September 25, 1983, when he suddenly received a frantic call from the Secret Service, warning him of an impending nuclear attack and ordered him to prepare to evacuate. Within minutes, a helicopter landed on his property and a pair of Secret Service agents rushed him and his family aboard. The helicopter headed west towards the Mt. Weather Emergency Operations Center, while the Secret Service ferried other Cabinet members in the same direction.
As soon as they landed, they were rushed inside the facility.
Life at Mount Weather (1983-84)[]
Most of the government officials at Mount Weather had brought their families with them. Many of these families had children among them. So during the time the Reagan Administration spent sheltering at Mt. Weather after Doomsday, Secretary Bell (with no other educational duties he could possibly do) volunteered to return to his old job as a teacher. During the dark months at Mt. Weather, Secretary Bell ran a "makeshift one-room schoolhouse" in one of the rooms of Mt. Weather's living quarters, doing his best to teach the children, comfort them, and even entertain them despite the darkness that had befallen the world.
During this time, President Reagan reportedly praised Bell as "a true teacher at heart, who tried to create a sense that life would go on for all the children who'd been plucked out of their homes with their families and brought to Mt. Weather in the middle of the night. We all owe him a debt of gratitude."
The American Provisional Administration[]
Bell was eventually moved to Hawaii with George Bush during the formation of the American Provisional Administration. Secretary Bell's duties mainly involved the administration of the school systems in Hawaii, American Samoa, and Guam, as well as setting up the beginnings of a small group of American schools in Canberra for the American exile population.
Final Year and Passing[]
After the closing of the APA, Secretary Bell spent his remaining time in retirement in Hilo, living in a home near the former APA headquarters. After years of teaching and striving for education, Mr. Bell now spent his days taking walks, attending church, and watching sunsets. He still occasionally made guest speaker appearances at local schools in Hawaii.