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Edward L. Cochran

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Edward L. Cochran
County Executive of Howard County, Maryland
In office
December 1974 – December 1978
Preceded byOmar J. Jones
Personal details
Born (1929-01-01) January 1, 1929 (age 95)
Political partyDemocratic Party
WebsiteHoward County Government

Edward L. Cochran (born 1929) was the second County Executive of Howard County, Maryland.

Early life and education

Dr. Cochran graduated from Loyola University in 1949. He earned his PhD. from the University of Notre Dame.[1]

Career as a Scientist

Cochran worked for the Applied Physics Laboratoryas a chemist for most of his career except for four years during which he was County Executive of Howard County, Maryland.[2] As chemist, Dr. Cochran was part of a team that carried out pioneering studies on the nature of free radicals, along with Chih-Kung Jen, F. J. Adrian, Bowers, Samuel Foner, and others, including the description of the Electron Spin Resonance spectra of simple free radicals trapped in solid matrices at cryogenic temperatures.[3] Dozens of free radicals were described for the first time, including hydrogen,[4] deuterium[5], nitrogen, methane, alkyl, [6] formyl[7], ethynyl and vinyl[8], NH2 and ND2[9], and cyanogen and Methylene Imino[10]. Their paper on electron spin resonance[11] proved to be one of the most frequently cited APL publications into the 21st century[12].

Political activity

Cochran was a member of the Howard County Board of Education from 1964 until 1968.[13] The Board of Education had pursued a policy of voluntary integration prior to 1964, which resulted in only a fraction of black students attending white schools[14]. As late as 1964, ten years after Brown v. Board of Education, the board stated that it would not consider forcing integration until 1967, to "allow for a reasonable period of adjustment" to the change[15]. However, in May 1964, as the county experienced increasing growth, the board was expanded to five members, and Cochran was appointed as one of the board's new members[16]. He is credited by Maryland State Senator Robert Kittleman, then the education chairman of Howard County's NAACP chapter, for providing the swing vote to close all-black schools and create voluntary integration 9 February 1965.[17], followed by mandatory integration in 1967.[18][19]

Cochran ran against Omar J. Jones in the 1970 Democratic Primary for Howard County Executive.[citation needed]

Cochran served as a councilman from 1971 to 1974, strongly supporting the new Howard Research project, Columbia.[20][better source needed] Omar J. Jones criticized Cochran for his staunch support of the project before leaving office.[21] Cochran pursued strict sign legislation in the County against heavy lobbying from Baltimore Council member Walter S. Orlinsky. [citation needed]

In 1974 Cochran was elected County Executive of Howard County[citation needed], and four out of five council positions are filed by residents of the Columbia project.[22]

Cochran was also a member of the Regional Planning Council, 1974-78 and of the Criminal Justice Information Advisory Board, 1977-80.[23]

In 2009, the Howard County Human Rights Commission awarded Dr. Cochran the 2009 Human Rights Award.[24] In 2010 Dr. Cochran was awarded the James Clark Jr. Medal from Howard County Coummunity College for his role in growing Howard Community College as a member of the board of trustees.[25]


Election history

In 1968 Cochran ran for the newly created position of Councilman.[26] In 1980 Cochran ran for the Howard County Board of Appeals.[27]

Year Office Election Subject Party Votes % Opponent Party Votes % Opponent Party Votes %
1974 Howard County Executive General Edward L. Cochran Democratic 12,847 Howard G. Crist Jr. Republican 11,235  

[28] [29]

References

  1. ^ Michael J. Clark (2 December 1974). "Howard's New Executive". The Baltimore Sun.
  2. ^ "As Keeper of County's Past, Activist Helps Shape Future; Preservation Group's President Uses Political Savvy, Civic Skills". The Washington Post. 13 September 2001.
  3. ^ http://jcp.aip.org/resource/1/jcpsa6/v40/i1/p213_s1?isAuthorized=no
  4. ^ http://jcp.aip.org/resource/1/jcpsa6/v32/i4/p963_s1
  5. ^ http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1958PhRv..112.1169J
  6. ^ http://jcp.aip.org/resource/1/jcpsa6/v34/i4/p1161_s1
  7. ^ http://jcp.aip.org/resource/1/jcpsa6/v36/i6/p1661_s1
  8. ^ http://jcp.aip.org/resource/1/jcpsa6/v40/i1/p213_s1
  9. ^ http://prl.aps.org/abstract/PRL/v1/i3/p91_1
  10. ^ http://jcp.aip.org/resource/1/jcpsa6/v36/i7/p1938_s1
  11. ^ http://prola.aps.org/abstract/PR/v112/i4/p1169_1
  12. ^ W. Berl (1996). "Chih Kung Jen—A Remembrance". Johns Hopkins APL Technical Digest 17 (3): 330–332.
  13. ^ Luke Broadwater (7 November 2002). "Watson strides to board win Daughter of former county exec follows dad's footsteps". Baltimore Sun. {{cite news}}: line feed character in |title= at position 28 (help)
  14. ^ http://archives.explorehoward.com/news/6008414/triumphs-ruling-still-resonate-after-50-years/#ixzz2XAOtiWLo
  15. ^ http://archives.explorehoward.com/news/6008414/triumphs-ruling-still-resonate-after-50-years/#ixzz2XAOtiWLo
  16. ^ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A21091-2004May12.html
  17. ^ http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2004-02-01/news/0402010072_1_howard-county-tubman-avery
  18. ^ Luke Broadwater (20 May 2004). "Triumphs of ruling still resonate after 50 years". The Baltimore Sun.
  19. ^ Susan DeFord (13 May 2004). "Difficult Change, One Step at a Time School Board's Go-Slow Ways Challenged". Baltimore Sun.
  20. ^ "Howard County Redistricting". Retrieved 20 June 2012.
  21. ^ "2 on Howard council scored". Baltimore Sun. 25 April 1974.
  22. ^ Joseph Rocco Mitchell, David L. Stebenne. New City Upon a Hill: A History of Columbia, Maryland. p. 111.
  23. ^ "County Executives". Retrieved 20 June 2013.
  24. ^ "2012 Human Rights Commission Award". Retrieved 22 June 2013.
  25. ^ "Howard Community College". Retrieved 22 June 2013.
  26. ^ "Cochran running for Howard post". The Baltimore Sun.
  27. ^ "Former Howard executive Cochran tries for position on county board of appeals". The Baltimore Sun. 23 September 1980.
  28. ^ Maryland State Board of Elections
  29. ^ Howard County, Maryland - Election Returns

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