Shirley Ann Mount Hufstedler was an American attorney and judge who served as the first U.S. Secretary of Education from 1979 to 1981. She previously served as a U.S. circuit judge of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals from 1968 to 1979.

The United States secretary of education is the head of the United States Department of Education. The secretary serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States, and the federal government, on policies, programs, and activities related to all education in the United States. As a member of the Cabinet of the United States, the secretary is sixteenth in the line of succession to the presidency.