A state education agency or state department of education is the state-level government organization within each U.S. state or territory responsible for education, including providing information, resources, and technical assistance on educational matters to schools and residents.
In all states but Hawaii, primary and secondary education (collectively known as K–12) are provided by school districts, while the state education agency handles only matters of statewide concern such as curriculum standards. In Hawaii and all inhabited federal territories, the state education agency or the equivalent territorial government agencies are responsible for directly operating primary and secondary schools.
States use different titles to refer to the executive of their state education agency, including; 34 states use one the two titles "Commissioner of Education" and "Superintendent of Public Instruction", and the remaining 16 use various combinations of secretary, superintendent, commissioner, or director; of education, public instruction, or schools."Chief State School Officer Addresses", Council of Chief State School Officers. Retrieved 11/1/08. Twelve states choose the head of their education agency through an election, of which eight states hold partisan and four states hold nonpartisan elections. The 37 remaining states appoint their education agency executive, whether the appointment be done by the governor, state school board, legislature, or some combination of factors.
State education agencies (SEAs) The following are state education agencies as identified by the Council of Chief State School Officers.
State State agency Chief state school officer Elected Service began Name Alabama Alabama Department of Education Alabama Superintendent of Education No 2018 Eric Mackey Alaska Alaska Department of Education & Early Development Alaska Commissioner of Education & Early Development No 2016 Michael Johnson Arizona Arizona Department of Education Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Yes 2023 Tom Horne Arkansas Arkansas Department of Education Arkansas Commissioner of Education No 2015 Johnny Key California California Department of Education California Superintendent of Public Instruction Yes 2019 Tony Thurmond Colorado Colorado Department of Education Colorado Commissioner of Education No 2016 Katy Anthes Connecticut Connecticut Department of Education Connecticut Commissioner of Education No 2021 Charlene Russell-Tucker Delaware Delaware Department of Education Delaware Secretary of Education No 2022 Mark Holodick Florida Florida Department of Education Florida Commissioner of Education No 2025 Anastasios Kamoutsas Georgia Georgia Department of Education State Superintendent of Schools Yes 2015 Richard Woods Hawaii Hawaii Department of Education Hawaii Superintendent of Education No 2021 Keith Hayashi Idaho Idaho State Department of Education Idaho Superintendent of Public Instruction Yes 2023 Debbie Critchfield Illinois Illinois State Board of Education Illinois Superintendent of Education No 2023 Tony Sanders Indiana Indiana Department of Education Indiana Secretary of Education No 2021 Katie Jenner Iowa Iowa Department of Education Iowa Director of Education No 2024 McKenzie Snow Kansas Kansas State Department of Education Kansas Commissioner of Education No 2015 Randy Watson Kentucky Kentucky Department of Education Kentucky Commissioner of Education No 2020 Jason Glass Louisiana Louisiana Department of Education Louisiana Superintendent of Education No 2020 Cade Brumley Maine Maine Department of Education Maine Commissioner of Education No 2019 Pender Makin Maryland Maryland State Department of Education Maryland State Superintendent of Schools No 2023 Carey Wright Massachusetts Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Massachusetts Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education No 2018 Jeffrey Riley Michigan Michigan Department of Education Michigan Superintendent of Public Instruction No 2019 Michael Rice Minnesota Minnesota Department of Education Minnesota Commissioner of Education No 2021 Heather Mueller Mississippi Mississippi Department of Education Mississippi Superintendent of Education No 2024 Lance Evans Missouri Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Missouri Commissioner of Education No 2019 Margie Vandeven Montana Montana Office of Public Instruction Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction Yes 2017 Elsie Arntzen Nebraska Nebraska Department of Education Nebraska Commissioner of Education No 2014 Matthew Blomstedt Nevada Nevada Department of Education Nevada Superintendent of Public Instruction No 2025 Victor Wakefield New Hampshire New Hampshire Department of Education New Hampshire Commissioner of Education No 2017 Frank Edelblut New Jersey New Jersey Department of Education New Jersey Commissioner of Education No 2024 Kevin Dehmer New Mexico New Mexico Public Education Department New Mexico Secretary of Education No 2022 Kurt Steinhaus New York New York State Education Department New York State Commissioner of Education No 2021 Betty Rosa North Carolina North Carolina Department of Public Instruction North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction Yes 2025 Mo Green North Dakota North Dakota Department of Public Instruction North Dakota Superintendent of Public Instruction Yes 2013 Kirsten Baesler Ohio Ohio Department of Education Ohio Superintendent of Public Instruction No 2023 Paul Craft Oklahoma Oklahoma State Department of Education Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction Yes 2023 Ryan Walters Oregon Oregon Department of Education Oregon Deputy Superintendent of Public Instruction No 2023 Charlene Williams Pennsylvania Pennsylvania Department of Education Pennsylvania Secretary of Education No 2023 Khalid Mumin Rhode Island Rhode Island Department of Education Rhode Island Commissioner of Education No 2019 Angélica Infante-Green South Carolina South Carolina Department of Education South Carolina Superintendent of Education Yes 2015 Molly Spearman South Dakota South Dakota Department of Education South Dakota Secretary of Education No 2020 Tiffany Sanderson Tennessee Tennessee Department of Education Tennessee Commissioner of Education No 2023 Lizzette Gonzalez Reynolds Texas Texas Education Agency Texas Commissioner of Education No 2015 Mike Morath Utah Utah State Office of Education Utah Superintendent of Public Instruction No 2016 Sydnee Dickson Vermont Vermont Agency of Education Vermont Secretary of Education No 2024 Zoie Saunders Virginia Virginia Department of Education Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction No 2023 Lisa Coons Washington Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction Washington Superintendent of Public Instruction Yes 2017 Chris Reykdal West Virginia West Virginia Department of Education West Virginia State Superintendent of Schools No 2023 Michele Blatt Wisconsin Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction Wisconsin Superintendent of Public Instruction Yes 2021 Jill Underly Wyoming Wyoming Department of Education Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction Yes 2022 Brian Schroeder American Samoa American Samoa Department of Education American Samoa Director of Education No 2021 Samasoni Asaeli District of Columbia District of Columbia Office of the State Superintendent of Education District of Columbia Superintendent of Education No 2021 Christina Grant Guam Guam Department of Education Guam Superintendent of Education No 2016 Jon Fernandez Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Public School System CNMI Commissioner of Education No 2019 Alfred Ada Puerto Rico Puerto Rico Department of Education Puerto Rico Secretary of Education No 2019 Eligio Hernández Pérez U.S. Virgin Islands U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Education U.S. Virgin Islands Commissioner of Education No 2019 Racquel Berry-Benjamin
See also National Association of State Boards of Education, United States No Child Left Behind, United States federal law School district Standardized test
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