Luminaries

Braulio Alonso

Braulio Alonso worked to help support his family from the time he was ten years old. Valedictorian in both high school and college (University of Tampa), he became a high school chemistry and physics teacher in 1941. Later that year, he entered the U.S. Army as a private and was immediately sent to Officers Candidate School. Upon discharge from the service in 1945, Major Alonso received the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart with Cluster.

He returned to public education in Florida as Director of Adult Education and On the Job Training for Veterans, a position he held from 1946 to 1953. During summers he attended the University of Florida, where he earned a master's degree and a Ph.D.

Alonso's life passions have been to improve schools and champion teachers. In pursuit of these goals, he served as president of the Hillsborough Education Association (1951–1956), and president of the Florida Education Association (FEA) in 1957, where he helped with the desegregation of that organization. He also served on the NEA board of directors from 1958 to 1964.

In 1967, Alonso was elected president of the NEA—the first Hispanic to hold this position.