In the American education system, a superintendent or superintendent of schools is an administrator or manager in charge of a number of public schools or a school district, a local government body overseeing public schools. All school principals in a respective school district report to the superintendent.
The role and powers of the superintendent vary among areas According to Sharp and Walter, a popularly held opinion is that "the most important role of the board of education is to hire its superintendent." [1]
The first education laws in the United States were enacted in the colonial era, when various New England colonies passed ordinances directing towns "to choose men to manage the important affairs of learning, such as deciding local taxes, hiring teachers, setting wages, and determining the length of the school year." [2] The persons responsible were frequently selectmen who had additional government responsibilities. [3] Boston established America's first permanent school committee in 1721; this became America's first school board. Massachusetts and some other regions retain the term school committee, but school board and board of education are the more common terms nationwide, and a variety of other labels have been used. [3] In 1986, about 95 percent of school board members were elected, with the rest appointed by town boards, mayors, or others. [4]
In early America, school board members handled the day-to-day administration of schools without the need for a superintendent. By the 1830s, however, the increasing numbers of students, as well as the consolidation of one-room schoolhouses into larger districts, led districts to begin appointing the first superintendents. Buffalo, New York, became the first location to appoint a superintendent, on June 9, 1837, with Louisville, Kentucky, following on July 31 of the same year. [4] Large cities, which had the greatest administrative needs, were the first to appoint superintendents, but as schools consolidated into districts, the practice of appointing a superintendent became more popular. [4]
A major event in the history of education in the United States was the "Kalamazoo school case" (Stuart v. School District No. 1 of the Village of Kalamazoo). [4] In 1858, Kalamazoo, Michigan established its first high school, and the following year, the Michigan Legislature enacted legislature authorizing the election of school districts and the establishment of high schools funded by local taxes. [5] In January 1873, three Kalamazoo property owners filed a lawsuit challenging the law. [5] In a unanimous decision of the Michigan Supreme Court in 1874 written by the prominent Justice Thomas M. Cooley, the law was upheld. [5] This decision led to a dramatic increase in the number of high schools operating both in Michigan and other states, which led to an increase in the number of superintendents. [4] [5]
Early superintendents tended to focus on instruction, with "overall fiscal affairs, school building construction, and maintenance" remaining under school district control, becoming normal responsibilities of superintendents only in the early twentieth century. [6] By the early twentieth century, superintendents emphasized business affairs. [7] Important leaders in American education at the time were George D. Strayer, Ellwood P. Cubberley, and Edward C. Elliott, who all wrote doctoral dissertations on education finance at Columbia University in the first decade of the 20th century. [7] Cubberley served as superintendent in San Diego and later taught at Stanford University, Strayer taught at Teachers College, Columbia University, and Elliott taught at the University of Wisconsin. [7]
In 1911, the idea of the superintendent as a separate professional emerged. [7] The emergence of the superintendency was linked to the adoption of a business organizational model in education. [7] Beginning in 1914, Columbia and other universities began to teach courses on educational administration, including school finance, business methods, budgeting, and organization. [7] Cubberley wrote a book in 1916 on this "New Profession" and emphasized the role of superintendent as chief executive of schools. [8] In 1914, the US Commissioner of Education wrote that the US was moving "unmistakably in the direction of a profession of educational administration as distinct from teaching." [9] By 1925, journals and books on educational administration had adopted a view of superintendents as executives, as Cubberley had advocated. [8]
The University of the State of New York is the state governmental umbrella organization that oversees all educational institutions, including schools, libraries, and museums in New York State. It is governed by the New York State Board of Regents.
Barbara Lett-Simmons was an American politician. She was an openly faithless elector in the 2000 presidential election when she refused to cast her votes in the Electoral College.
Judith Irene Bailey is an American academic who served as president of Northern Michigan University (1997–2003) and Western Michigan University (2003–2006).
The District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) is the local public school system for Washington, D.C. It is distinct from the District of Columbia Public Charter Schools (DCPCS), which governs public charter schools in the city.
The Collingswood Public Schools is a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from Collingswood, in Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.
The California Department of Education is an agency within the government of California that oversees public education.
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.
Robert C. Bobb is a former appointed official who was the Emergency Financial Manager for the Detroit Public Schools until 2011. In addition to having been employed by the school district, he received a salary from private foundations that promote school choice and privatization, and he owns a private/public sector consulting firm.
The history of education in the United States covers the trends in formal education in America from the 17th century to the early 21st century.
Ellwood Patterson Cubberley was an American educator, a eugenicist, and a pioneer in the field of education management. He spent most of his career as a professor and later served as the first dean of the Stanford University Graduate School of Education in California.
The State Bar of Michigan is the governing body for lawyers in the State of Michigan. Membership is mandatory for attorneys who practice law in Michigan. The organization's mission is to aid in promoting improvements in the administration of justice and advancements in jurisprudence, improving relations between the legal profession and the public, and promoting the interests of the legal profession in Michigan.
Herold Christian Hunt was an American educator and government official who served as Superintendent of the Chicago Public Schools and 2nd Under Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare. Hunt was also the Charles W. Eliot Professor of Education at Harvard University, president of the American Association of School Administrators, and chairman of the American Council on Education. He served on the National Board of the Boy Scouts of America, and was awarded the Silver Buffalo in 1963 for his contributions to scouting.
Harry Thomas Edwards is an American jurist. He served as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit from 1980 to 2005, taking senior status in 2005, and a professor of law at the New York University School of Law.
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 since statehood. The incumbent is Jill Underly.
Arlene C. Ackerman was an American educator who served as superintendent of the District of Columbia Public Schools, San Francisco Unified School District, and Philadelphia Public Schools.
The District of Columbia State Board of Education (SBOE) is an independent executive branch agency of the Government of the District of Columbia, in the United States. The SBOE provides advocacy and policy guidance for the District of Columbia Public Schools, and works with the Chancellor of the District of Columbia Public Schools and the District of Columbia State Superintendent of Education. Charter schools are overseen by the District of Columbia Public Charter School Board.
Charles Ernest Chadsey was an American educator and school administrator. He served as superintendent of city schools in Chicago, Detroit, Denver, and Durango.
William McAndrew Jr. was an American educator and editor who served as Superintendent of Chicago Public Schools in the 1920s. McAndrew was, for a time, one of the best-known educators in the United States.
Jason Elmer Hammond was an American educator and politician.
Michael F. Rice is an American educator.
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