In December 2020, the Wall Street Journal published an op-ed by Joseph Epstein wherein he suggested to soon-to-be-First-Lady Dr. Jill Biden that she drop the “Dr.” upon arriving at the White House. Epstein is a writer who is not unfamiliar with blindsiding his audience with his takes—in 1970 he published a homophobic article in Harper’s Bazaar, and fifty years later he made waves again with his Wall Street Journal piece.
“Madame First Lady—Mrs. Biden—Jill—kiddo: a bit of advice on what may seem like a small but I think is a not unimportant matter. Any chance you might drop the ‘Dr.’ before your name?” he wrote. “‘Dr. Jill Biden’ sounds and feels fraudulent, not to say a touch comic. Your degree is, I believe, an Ed.D., a doctor of education, earned at the University of Delaware through a dissertation with the unpromising title ‘Student Retention at the Community College Level: Meeting Students’ Needs,’” he continued. “A wise man once said that no one should call himself ‘Dr.’ unless he has delivered a child. Think about it, Dr. Jill, and forthwith drop the doc.”
“That was such a surprise! It was really the tone of it that I think—he called me ‘kiddo,’” Jill Biden told Stephen Colbert on The Late Show back in December. “One of the things I am most proud of is my doctorate. I worked so hard for it.”
I am here to make my case in defense of Dr. Biden’s doctorate. The fact that there are Americans out there who once again aim to fix an identity on a female figure in the public eye does not baffle me but only continues to show how women in powerful positions are repeatedly questioned and doubted. I will use my voice to defend her not because I believe all people with doctorates need to be addressed as “Doctor.” What is your defense then, you ask? Because Dr. Biden herself chooses to go by “Dr. Biden.”
As a junior in college, I have encountered a number of adults who have brought up the topic of their doctorates the minute I meet them. When a professor kindly asks that students address them as “Dr.” or in contrast asks that they be called only by their first name, we respectfully accept their request. I can recall times when I begin an email to a professor without the title prefixing their name and they call me out on it—as they should. I’m not offended when someone calls me out on my mistakes.
Just like Dr. Jill Biden, my professors have spent years of their lives in school, becoming experts in their fields. If they want me to address them a certain way, I will do so out of respect. You have probably faced this situation outside of the classroom as well: Friends’ parents want to be called by their first names or by Mr. or Mrs./Ms./Miss. blank. Perhaps your significant other’s parents want you to address them a certain way. Even a close family friend might want to be considered your “aunt” or “uncle.” In each of these instances, the person on the receiving end of the request should accept so respectfully. Has someone talked to Mr. Epstein about this virtue?
Dr. Biden has spent many years in school becoming an expert in the field of education—much like the professionals I have the privilege of meeting in the classroom. She received her Master of Education from West Chester University while pregnant with her daughter Ashley, while simultaneously teaching English at a high school in Delaware. She held many other teaching jobs and founded Book Buddies (a program supplying books to low-income families in Delaware) and Biden Breast Health Initiative (a non-profit that provides breast health awareness to schools in Delaware) all before returning back to school in the early-2000s in pursuit of her doctorate. In 2007, when she was 55 years old, Biden received her Doctorate of Education in educational leadership from the University of Delaware. Needless to say, Dr. Biden juggles a lot.
Rooted in his op-ed is a deep sense of misogyny, as he approaches Dr. Biden with a sense of false authority—Epstein believes he has the right to make a decision regarding what Dr. Biden should be called. He creates a hierarchy of professions, trivializing the importance of Dr. Biden’s work.
Students and educators across the country deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. As Dr. Jill Biden adds “First Lady duties” to her daily schedule, I send her my admiration and respect. Educators plant the seeds of our country’s future. You hear that, Mr. Epstein? They deserve our respect like all our educators do.
