United States Deputy Secretary of Education

Deputy Secretary of Education of the United States of America
Seal of the Department of Education
Incumbent Richard Smith [1] Acting   since January 20, 2025
United States Department of Education
Style	Mr. / Madam Deputy Secretary
Reports to	United States Secretary of Education
Seat	Washington, D.C.
Appointer	The president with Senate advice and consent
Constituting instrument	20 U.S.C.   § 3412
First holder	David T. Kearns
Website	Official website

The deputy secretary of education oversees and manages the development of policies in the United States Department of Education. The deputy secretary focuses primarily on K–12 education policy, such as No Child Left Behind, the High School Initiative, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. ^[2] The deputy secretary also has responsibility for carrying out the intergovernmental relations of the department. The deputy secretary becomes acting secretary of education in the event of the secretary's absence, disability, or a vacancy in the Office of Secretary. ^[3]

The office of the deputy secretary coordinates the work of the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, the Office of Innovation and Improvement, the Office of English Language Acquisition, the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, and the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools. The deputy secretary also oversees the department's LEP Partnership, the Office for Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, and the department's partnership with The History Channel. ^[2]

The deputy secretary is nominated by the president and confirmed by the United States Senate. ^{[2] [3]} The deputy secretary is paid at level II of the Executive Schedule, ^[4] meaning as of 2006, the deputy secretary receives a basic annual salary of $162,000. ^[5]

List of deputy secretaries of education

#	Image	Name	Term began	Term ended	President(s) served under
1		David T. Kearns	May 31, 1991	January 20, 1993	George H. W. Bush
2		Madeleine M. Kunin	January 1993	August 1996 [6]	Bill Clinton
3		Marshall S. Smith	1997	1999
4		Frank Holleman	December 28, 1999	January 20, 2001
5		William D. Hansen	May 28, 2001	October 5, 2003	George W. Bush
6		Eugene W. Hickok	October 5, 2003	January 20, 2005
7		Raymond Simon	May 26, 2005	January 20, 2009
8		Anthony Wilder Miller	July 24, 2009	July 2013	Barack Obama
9		James H. Shelton III	July 2013	January 4, 2015 [7]
–		John King Jr. Acting, Sr. Advisor	January 4, 2015	March 14, 2016 [8] [9]
–		James Cole Jr. Acting	March 14, 2016	January 20, 2017
10		Mick Zais	May 17, 2018	January 20, 2021	Donald Trump
–		Denise L. Carter Acting	January 20, 2021	May 18, 2021	Joe Biden
11		Cindy Marten	May 18, 2021 [10]	January 20, 2025
–		Richard Smith Acting	January 20, 2025	Present	Donald Trump

References

1. https://www.ed.gov/about/ed-organization/leadership-directory/bios-senior-officials
2. "Office of the Deputy Secretary: U.S. Department of Education" . Retrieved September 27, 2007.
3. "US Code: Title 20,3412. Principal officers" . Retrieved September 27, 2007.
4. "US Code: Title 5,5313. Positions at level II" . Retrieved September 27, 2007.
5. "Salary Table No. 2006-EX". Archived from the original on August 7, 2007. Retrieved September 27, 2007.
6. "Madeleine Kunin Home Page".
7. U.S. Deputy Ed. Secretary Jim Shelton to Step Down
8. Diane Ravitch
9. "Education Secretary Arne Duncan stepping down | CNN Politics". CNN . October 2, 2015. Archived from the original on September 21, 2020.
10. Miguel, Cardona (May 18, 2021). "What an honor to have @BeKindDreamBig join us as Deputy Secretary of Education. As superintendent of the second largest school district in CA & one of the longest serving urban school leaders in America, Cindy will be an incredible asset to @USEdGov ". Twitter.