RE: Dr. Jill Biden. Having worked in academia for 40 years(!), the controversery over her title is this: TECHNICALLY, in old fashioned academia, someone with a PhD or EdD is not supposed to be called "Dr" outside of academia. HOWEVER, since hardly anyone knows this (& since the word "doctor" comes from the Latin word that means "to teach"; think "docents" in museums), it is common practice now to recognize their accomplishments in non academic settings.