Michigan Department of Education

Last updated
Department of Education
MDE Logo.jpg
Michigan Department of Education Logo
Department overview
Formed1850
Headquarters608 West Allegan Street, Lansing [1]
Ministers responsible
  • Dr. Pamela Pugh, Board President
  • Ms. Ellen Lipton, Board Vice President
  • Dr. Judith Pritchett, Board Secretary
  • Mr. Marshall Bullock, II, Board Treasurer
  • Dr. Mitchell Robinson, NASBE Delegate
Department executives
  • Michael F Rice, Superintendent of Public Instruction
  • Sue C Carnell, Chief Deputy
  • Delsa Chapman, Deputy Superintendent, Educator, Student, and School Supports
  • Scott Koenigsknecht, Deputy Superintendent, P-20 System and Student Transitions
  • Vacant, Deputy Superintendent, Finance Operations
Child agencies
  • Library of Michigan
  • Michigan School for the Deaf
Key document
Website https://www.michigan.gov/mde

The Michigan Department of Education (MDE) is a state agency of Michigan, in the United States. The MDE oversees public school districts in the state. The department is governed by the State Board of Education. The State Board of Education was first provided for in the Constitution of 1850 and currently exists through the provisions of Article VIII, Section 3, of the Constitution of 1963. The state board is composed of eight members [2] nominated by party conventions and elected at-large for terms of eight years, with two members being elected at each biennial state general election. The governor is authorized to fill vacancies on the state board and also serves as an ex officio member of the state board, without the right to vote. The superintendent of public instruction is appointed by the board for a term to be determined by the board, to serve as its chair, without the right to vote. [3]

Contents

The department is led by the superintendent of public instruction, Michael F. Rice, who was appointed in 2019. [4] As the principal executive officer of the Department of Education, the superintendent sits on the Governor's Cabinet, the State Administrative Board, and acts as chair and a non-voting member of the State Board of Education. The superintendent advises the legislature on education policy and funding needs, as defined by the State Board of Education. The superintendent is responsible for the implementation of bills passed by the legislature and policies established by the State Board of Education. The superintendent is a spokesperson for education in the state. The superintendent also is the primary liaison to the United States Department of Education and other federal agencies. [5]

Major departmental responsibilities include: educator preparation and certification; providing technical assistance to schools in the areas of education improvement and innovation, special education, grants, transportation, health and food programs; statewide student assessment; school accountability; career and technical education; early childhood learning; distribution of state school aid; and overseeing the distribution and use of federal education program funding. The department also operates the Library of Michigan and the Michigan School for the Deaf in Flint. [6]

List of superintendents of public instruction

A group photo of men who have served as Michigan superintendent of public instruction in the late 19th and early 20th-century. Superintendents of Public Instruction for Michigan.png
A group photo of men who have served as Michigan superintendent of public instruction in the late 19th and early 20th-century.

The following is a list of those who have served as Michigan Superintendent of Public Instruction. [7]

SuperintendentTermNotes
John Davis Pierce 1836–1841
Franklin Sawyer Jr.1841–1843
Oliver C. Comstock1843–1845
Ira Mayhew1845–1849
Francis W. Shearman1849–1854
Ira Mayhew1855–1858
John M. Gregory1859–1864
Oramel Hosford1865–1872
Daniel B. Briggs1873–1876
Horace S. Tarbell1877–1878Resigned.
Cornelius A. Gower1878–1881Resigned.
Varnum B. Cochran1881–1883Resigned.
Herschel R. Gass1883–1885Resigned.
Theodore Nelson1885–1886
Joseph Estabrook1887–1890
Ferris S. Fitch Jr. 1891–1892
Henry R. Pattengill 1893–1896
Jason E. Hammond 1897–1900
Delos Fall1901–1904
Patrick H. Kelley 1905–1906
Luther L. Wright1907–1913Resigned.
Fred L. Keeler1913–1919Died in office.
Thomas E. Johnson1919–1926Removed by governor.
Wilford L. Coffey1926–1927
Webster H. Pearce1927–1933
Paul F. Voelker1933–1935
Maurice R. KeyworthDied before taking office.
Eugene B. Elliott1935–1948Resigned.
Lee M. Thurston1948–1953Resigned.
Clair L. Taylor1953–1957
Lynn M. Bartlett1957–1965
Alexander J. Kloster1965–1966Acting superintendent.
Ira Polley1966–1969
John W. Porter1969–1979Resigned.
Eugene T. Paslov1979–1980Interim superintendent.
Phillip E. Runkel1980–1987
Gary D. Hawks1987–1988Interim superintendent.
Donald L. Bemis1988–1991Resigned.
Gary D. Hawks1991Interim superintendent.
Robert E. Schiller1991–1995
Arthur E. Ellis1995–2001
Thomas D. Watkins Jr.2001–2005
Jeremy Hughes2005Interim superintendent.
Michael P. Flanagan 2005–2015
Brian J. Whiston2015–2018Died in office.
Sheila A. Alles2018–2019Interim superintendent.
Michael F. Rice 2019–

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hawaii State Department of Education</span> State education agency

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction</span> U.S. state constitutional officer

The North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction is an elected constitutional officer in the executive branch of the government of the U.S. state of North Carolina. As the head of the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, the superintendent oversees the public school systems of the state. They also serve as the secretary of the North Carolina State Board of Education and are a member of the North Carolina Council of State. The incumbent is Catherine Truitt, who became superintendent on January 2, 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Carolina State Board of Education</span>

The North Carolina State Board of Education, established by Article 9 of the Constitution of North Carolina, supervises and administers the public school systems of North Carolina. The board sets policy and general procedures for public school systems across the state, including teacher pay and qualifications, course content, testing requirements, and manages state education funds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ohio Department of Education</span>

The Ohio Department of Education (ODE) is the administrative department of the Ohio state government responsible for primary and secondary public education in the state. The Ohio State Board of Education is the governing body of the department and is responsible for overseeing the department. The board employs the Superintendent of Public Instruction, who runs the department. The department is headquartered in Columbus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">California State Superintendent of Public Instruction</span> Educational position

The state superintendent of public instruction (SPI) of California is the nonpartisan elected executive officer of the California Department of Education. The SPI directs all functions of the Department of Education, executes policies set by the California State Board of Education, and also heads and chairs the Board. The superintendent is elected to a four-year term, serves as the state’s chief spokesperson for public schools, provides education policy and direction to local school districts, and also serves as an ex officio member of governing boards of the state’s higher education system. The current superintendent of public instruction is Tony Thurmond.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education</span>

The Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education is an agency of the state of Oklahoma located in Stillwater, Oklahoma.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constitution of Michigan</span> Principles, institutions and law of political governance in the U.S. state of Michigan

The Constitution of the State of Michigan is the governing document of the U.S. state of Michigan. It describes the structure and function of the state's government.

The Oklahoma State Superintendent of Public Instruction, sometimes called the Oklahoma State School Superintendent, is the chief executive officer for the Oklahoma State Department of Education and the president of the Oklahoma State Board of Education. The State Superintendent of Public Instruction is responsible for overseeing, implementing and reviewing the policies of the Oklahoma's public school system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Regents of the University of Michigan</span> Governing body of the University of Michigan

The Regents of the University of Michigan, sometimes referred to as the board of regents, is a constitutional office of the U.S. state of Michigan which forms the governing body of the University of Michigan, comprising the campuses at Ann Arbor, Flint, and Dearborn. The Board of Regents was first created by legislative act in 1837, and the regents as a body corporate have been defined in the Constitution of Michigan since 1850. There are eight regents, two of whom are elected to an eight-year term by statewide ballot every two years, plus the president of the University of Michigan, who serves ex officio but does not vote.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oklahoma State Department of Education</span> State education agency in the United States

The Oklahoma State Department of Education is the state education agency of the State of Oklahoma charged with determining the policies and directing the administration and supervision of the public school system of Oklahoma. The State Board of Education, the governing body of the Department, is composed of the Oklahoma State Superintendent of Public Instruction and six members appointed by the Governor of Oklahoma with the approval of the Oklahoma Senate. The State Superintendent, in addition to serving as chair of the Board, serves as the chief executive officer of the Department and is elected by the voters of Oklahoma every four years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Government of Michigan</span> Executive, legislative, and judicial governing bodies of the US state of Michigan

Michigan has a republican form of government with three branches of government: the executive branch consisting of the governor of Michigan and the other independently elected constitutional officers; the legislative branch consisting of the House of Representatives and Senate; and the judicial branch consisting of the one court of justice. The state also allows direct participation of the electorate by initiative, referendum, recall, and ratification.

Washington ratified its constitution and held its first state elections in 1889, the year it was admitted to the union as a state. It established the positions of governor, lieutenant governor, Secretary of State, attorney general, state treasurer, state auditor, Commissioner of Public Lands, and Superintendent of Public Instruction. The position of insurance commissioner was legislatively established in 1907. All positions are elected to four-year terms, concurrent with presidential elections. Washington is one of three states that elects nine separate statewide officials, while six others elect ten.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Florida Department of Education</span> State education agency of Florida

The Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) is the state education agency of Florida. It governs public education and manages funding and testing for local educational agencies. It is headquartered in the Turlington Building in Tallahassee.

The Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) oversees primary and secondary education in the U.S. state of Indiana. The department is managed by the Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction, an elected office most recently held by Jennifer McCormick until January, 2021. The Superintendent serves as voting member and the chair of the Indiana State Board of Education, an eleven-member body with its ten other members appointed by the Governor of Indiana. The board sets statewide school policy and has limited control over curriculum.

The Superintendent of Public Instruction was an elected office in the state government of Indiana. The official was an elected member of the executive branch of government and work with the state Board of Education as head of the Indiana Department of Education to oversee certain areas of public schools in Indiana. The position was created in 1851 with the adoption of the Constitution of Indiana, and filled in the first general election following its creation. The position of the Superintendent of Public Instruction was abolished in 2021, being replaced by the Secretary of Education, who is appointed by the Governor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mississippi Department of Education</span>

The Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) is the state education agency of Mississippi. It is headquartered in the former Central High School Building at 359 North West Street in Jackson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Superintendent of Public Instruction of Wisconsin</span>

The Superintendent of Public Instruction, sometimes referred to as the State Superintendent of Schools, is a constitutional officer within the executive branch of the Wisconsin state government, and acts as the executive head of the Department of Public Instruction. Twenty-eight individuals have held the office of Superintendent of Public Instruction since statehood. The incumbent is Jill Underly.

Formal education in Mississippi began in the early 19th century with private schools and academies, a public education system was founded during the Reconstruction era, by the biracial legislature led by the Republican Party. Throughout its history, Mississippi has produced notable education inequalities due to racial segregation and underfunding of black schools, as well as rural zoning and lack of commitment to funding education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction</span> Elected official

The Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction is an elected state executive position in the Arizona state government. The superintendent oversees the state of Arizona's public school system and directs the state's Department of Education.

Michael F. Rice is an American educator.

References

  1. MDE - Contact Information. Michigan Department of Education. Retrieved on January 19, 2023.
  2. State Board of Education Members. Michigan Department of Education. Retrieved on January 9, 2019.
  3. "Article VIII, Section 3" (PDF). Constitution of Michigan. 1963.
  4. "State Board Appoints Michael Rice As Next State Superintendent". www.michigan.gov. Retrieved May 7, 2019.
  5. MDE - Superintendent. Michigan Department of Education. Retrieved on August 1, 2019
  6. "Michigan Manual" (PDF). Michigan Legislature. 2021–2022.
  7. "Former Officials of Michigan" (PDF). Michigan Legislature. 2021. p. 507. Retrieved January 6, 2023.