1/22/85 -- For Immediate Release - Dr. Esther Hult, UNI Emeritus Education Professor, Dies in Wisconsin
CEDAR FALLS -- Services for Dr. Esther Hult, emeritus professor of education at the University of Northern Iowa, have tentatively been set for Friday in Superior, Wisconsin. Dr. Hult, 81, died Monday (Jan. 21) at Superior Memorial Hospital of coronary arrest. Dr. Hult taught at UNI from 1943 to 1972. She coordinated the undergraduate and graduate programs in elementary education during the 1960s. She was known across the nation for her work in elementary education and involved in preparations for the Golden Anniversary White House Conference on Children and Youth. At the state level, she worked on a Department of Public Instruction committee to develop a social studies handbook to prepare children for the Era of Atomic Energy. She also took an active interest in the state's child protection labs. She served as state president of the Iowa Association for Childhood Education for two years and as state president of the Iowa Council for Better Education for one year. Dr. Hult was a member of the Iowa Commission on Children and Youth, Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, National Council for the Social Studies, National Society for the Study of Education, Iowa State Education Association, National Education Association, and Delta Kappa Gamma, a fraternity for women in education.
Dr. Hult received her Ph.D. and master's degrees from the University of Wisconsin and her bachelor's degree from Superior State Teachers College. In 1943, she earned a fellowship in the Department of Education at Wisconsin. Before coming to Northern Iowa, she taught history and economics and was supervising teacher of social science at a Richland Center, Wisconsin, rural normal school from 1938-42; taught high school history at Milltown, Wisconsin, from 1929 to 1938; and taught elementary school at Plum City, Wisconsin, from 1925 to 1929. She was born November 15, 1903, in Cambridge, Minnesota. Survivors include her sister, Catherine Erbe of Superior, and several nieces and nephews. Thompson Hegstrom Funeral Home in Superior is in charge of arrangements. Memorials may be made in her name to the University of Northern Iowa Foundation.
Dr. Esther Hult, emeritus professor of education, passed away Monday, January 21, of coronary arrest following surgery at Superior Memorial Hospital. Services will be at 2:00, Friday in Superior, Wisconsin, under the direction of Thompson Hegstrom Funeral Home. Dr. Hult joined the instructional staff at the University of Northern Iowa in 1943, served as Administrative Assistant in the Department of Education and served as coordinator of graduate and undergraduate programs in elementary education until her retirement in 1972. She regularly returned to teach classes through 1975. She was recognized nationally for her leadership in the field of education and was involved in preparations for the Golden Anniversary White House Conference for Children and Youth. Dr. Hult was actively involved in a number of professional organizations including: the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, National Council for the Social Studies, National Society for the Study of Education, National Education Association, and Delta Kappa Gamma.
At the state level she was a member of the Iowa Commission on Children and Youth and served as a delegate to the White House Conference on Children and Youth. She served as president of the Iowa Association for Childhood Education and as president of the Iowa Council for Better Education. She served on a Department of Public Instruction Committee to develop a handbook to prepare children for the Era of Atomic Energy and worked to develop the state's child protection laws. At the university level, Dr. Hult served as a catalyst and leader to totally revise the elementary education major and worked to develop many innovative programs which put the institution at the forefront of the field. Her Ph.D. and master's degrees were earned at the University of Wisconsin and her undergraduate work was from Superior State Teachers College. In 1943 she earned a fellowship at the University of Wisconsin. Before coming to Northern Iowa, Dr. Hult had taught history and economics at the secondary level, had also taught in the elementary grades, and at the university level. She was born November 15, 1903, in Cambridge, Minnesota. She is survived by her sister, Mrs. Selma Catherine Erbe, of Superior, and several nieces and nephews. Memorials can be made in her name to the University of Northern Iowa Foundation.