Ralph Turlington

Ralph Donald Turlington Sr. (October 5, 1920 – May 12, 2021) was an American politician from the state of Florida.

Ralph Turlington
Education Commissioner of Florida
In office 1974–1986
Governor	Reubin Askew Bob Graham
Preceded by	Floyd T. Christian
Succeeded by	Betty Castor
Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives
In office 1967–1969
Preceded by	E. C. Rowell
Succeeded by	Frederick H. Schultz
Member of the Florida House of Representatives from the Alachua County district
In office 1950–1974
Personal details
Born	Ralph Donald Turlington (1920-10-05)October 5, 1920 Gainesville, Florida, U.S.
Died	May 12, 2021(2021-05-12) (aged 100) Durham, North Carolina, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Ann Gellerstedt ​ ​ (m. 1946; died 2003)​ [1][2]
Children	2
Alma mater	University of Florida Harvard University
Occupation	insurance agent

Early life

Turlington was born in Gainesville, Florida in 1920. Turlington was in the inaugural class of the P. K. Yonge Developmental Research School, where he was a distinguished alumni, graduating in 1938. He attended the University of Florida, where he was also a distinguished alumni, to obtain a Bachelor of Science degree in business and Harvard University for his master's degree in the same field.^[3]

After completing his education, Turlington was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the United States Army with the Third Army the Battle of the Bulge during World War II. After the war, he worked at the University of Florida.^[3] In 1947, he became a faculty member of Alpha Kappa Psi Professional Business Fraternity.^[4] He received a Distinguished Alumni Award from the University of Florida in 1968.^[5]

Florida House of Representatives

He was elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 1950 for Alachua County.^[6] He would serve until 1974, eventually also serving as speaker from 1967 to 1969.^[3] He was the Florida Commissioner of Education from 1974 to 1987.^[3] He was elected to Constitutional office in Florida more times than any other person in the history of Florida. Following his service as Commissioner of Education, Turlington joined the American College Testing Program (ACT) and served full-time as a consultant to longtime friend Dr. James W. Carr.

Personal life

Turlington was married to Ann Gellerstedt (until her death in 2003)^[7] and had two children, Donald and Katherine.^[8] Turlington died on May 12, 2021, at the age of 100, in Durham, North Carolina.^[9][10][11]

Legacy

A large building at the University of Florida, Ralph D. Turlington Hall, is named after him. It is located in the center of campus, houses multiple departments in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and over a hundred classrooms.^[5] The Florida Department of Education headquarters in Tallahassee, the Turlington Building, is also named in his honor.^[12]