Carlos A. Chardón

This article is about the former Secretary of Education. For his father, the mycologist, see Carlos E. Chardón.

Carlos E. Chardón Lopez is a Puerto Rican educator and public servant. He has served twice as Secretary of the Puerto Rico Department of Education and is now the Assistant Secretary of State for Governmental Affairs.

Biography

Chardón (birth name: Carlos E. Chardón Lopez) was born in Venezuela, when his parents were there while his father was doing research in mycology. His father Carlos E. Chardón is the first mycologist in Puerto Rico and the first native to be appointed as Chancellor of the University of Puerto Rico. His uncle Carlos Fernando Chardón (1907-1981), served as the Puerto Rico Adjutant General and Secretary of State of Puerto Rico from 1969 to 1973.

The younger Chardón did graduate work at Syracuse University in New York state to earn his doctorate. During that time, Chardón worked at the Division of Human Rights of the State of New York as a field representative.

Political career

After returning to Puerto Rico, Chardón was appointed as an aide to Governor Luis A. Ferré. A lifelong Republican Party (United States), Chardón has served as Secretary of Puerto Rico's Republican Party and as a member of the Republican National Committee.

In the 1970s, Chardón has first appointed as Secretary of Education of the commonwealth, under Governor Carlos Romero Barceló. More than 30 years later, under Governor Luis Fortuño, he was appointed again to the position. He resigned on November 30, 2009 to take a position as assistant to Kenneth McClintock, Secretary of State of Puerto Rico. Chardón also chaired the Board of Directors of the Urban Renewal Corporation.

During his first stint as Secretary, he concentrated in improving the quality of teachers and increasing the number of teachers with Master's degrees, developing English-language immersion courses and increasing the funding of education in the arts^{[citation needed]}. He subsequently served as Executive Vice President of the Ponce Museum of Art, founded by former Gov. Ferré, and as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music.

At the Federal level, he has served as liaison Representative of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) (now Dept. of Health and Human Services). He also served as the Caribbean District Director for the U.S. Small Business Administration; he increased loans by 1,000% in spite of 50% staffing cuts, which led the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce to honor him twice.^{[citation needed]}

He chaired the State Volunteer Action Board for AmeriCorps.

In private life, he has served as a member and Vice Chairman of the Puerto Rico Academy of Arts and Sciences.

See also

• List of famous Puerto Ricans
• Carlos E. Chardón Palacios, father and mycologist

References

Preceded by Rafael Aragunde	Puerto Rico Secretary of Education 2009	Succeeded by Odette Piñeiro
Preceded by ???	Puerto Rico Secretary of Education 1977	Succeeded by ???