Education force, namesake of Pell Grants dies at 90

January 2, 2009 at 12:00a.m.

The multimillionaire legislator spent his career helping the less fortunate.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Claiborne Pell, the quirky blueblood who represented blue-collar Rhode Island in the U.S. Senate for 36 years and was the force behind a grant program that has helped tens of millions of Americans attend college, died Thursday after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease. He was 90.

Pell, a Democrat, died at his Newport home just after midnight, according to his former assistant, Jan Demers.

Pell was first elected to the Senate in 1960. The skinny son of a New York congressman, Pell spoke with an aristocratic tone but was an unabashed liberal who spent his political career championing causes to help the less fortunate.

He disclosed he had Parkinson’s in 1995 and left office in January 1997 after his sixth term.

Members of Rhode Island’s all-Democratic congressional delegation lauded Pell’s legacy.

“Senator Pell was a remarkable statesman and legislator who worked tirelessly to promote peace and expand opportunity through education,” Sen. Jack Reed said.

“We will all miss him deeply and long benefit from the works of his far-seeing soul,” Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse said. And Rep. Jim Langevin called Pell a “gentleman and champion for those who needed their voices heard.”

When asked his greatest achievement, Pell always was quick to answer, “Pell Grants.”

He sponsored legislation creating the Basic Educational Opportunity Grants, which passed in 1972 and provided direct aid to college students. The awards were renamed “Pell Grants” in 1980. By the time Pell retired, they had aided more than 54 million low- and middle-income Americans.

“He believed strongly that a good education could open infinite doors of opportunity, and he has transformed the lives of millions of young people who have been able to go to college because of the grant that rightly bears his name,” said Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass.

Thomas Hughes, Pell’s chief of staff from 1975 until his retirement, said Pell believed financial aid should be given directly to students rather than distributed by colleges and universities.

“He always had this view that the federal government should help young people be able to have an education,” Hughes said.

Quiet, thoughtful and polite to a fault, Pell seemed out of place in an era of in-your-face, made-for-television politicians. A multimillionaire, he often wore old, ill-fitting suits and sometimes jogged in a tweed coat.

Though criticized by some for his fascination with UFOs and extra sensory perception, he was best remembered for his devotion to education, maritime and foreign affairs issues.