Pedro Rivera is the former Pennsylvania Secretary of Education, having been nominated by

Pennsylvania Governor The governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is the head of state and head of government of the U.S. state, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, as well as commander-in-chief of the Commonwealth's military forces. The governor has a duty to enforc ...

Tom Wolf Thomas Westerman Wolf (born November 17, 1948) is an American politician and businessman serving as the 47th governor of Pennsylvania since 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, he defeated Republican incumbent Tom Corbett in the 2014 guber ...

and confirmed in June 2015. Previously, he served as superintendent of the

School District of Lancaster The School District of Lancaster is a large, urban school district of 11,300 students educated in 19 schools in central Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Established in 1836, it is the second oldest school district in the state. School District ...

. Starting October 1, 2020, he began a new role as President of

Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology (Stevens Tech) is a public technical college in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It offers twenty-two academic programs for about 1,200 students. It was named for Thaddeus Stevens, a nineteenth-century statesman. T ...

. A

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

native, Rivera spent 13 years at the School District of Philadelphia before accepting the Lancaster position in 2008. During his tenure, Lancaster saw improved graduation rates, better reading proficiency scores and a growth in financial reserve funds. Rivera has been recognized by ''

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'' and the

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for his academic achievements.

Early life and career

Pedro Rivera was born in

, growing up in the Hunting Park section of the city. His grandmother came to Philadelphia from

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

to take a job in a sewing factory. Rivera received a bachelor's degree in education from

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...

, a master's degree in education administration from Cheyney University of Pennsylvania, and a superintendent letter of eligibility from Arcadia University. He spent 13 years working in the School District of Philadelphia, holding principal positions from August 2001 to July 2006, including principal of Sheridan Elementary School and assistant principal of Kensington High School. Rivera also held the positions of bilingual teacher, coordinator of English as a second language programs, and executive director of high schools, and finished his time there as director of the human resources department. He also served as president of the Philadelphia Association of Hispanic School Administrators.

Career

In November 2020, Rivera was named a volunteer member of the Joe Biden presidential transition Agency Review Team to support transition efforts related to the

United States Department of Education The United States Department of Education is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government. It began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was split into the Department ...

Lancaster superintendent

On April 16, 2008, Rivera was appointed superintendent of the

, which includes about 11,500 students. He was chosen by a 5–4 vote from the Lancaster School Board after a meeting that drew a great deal of heated public testimony, including racial overtones. The decision was described by

Lancaster Online ''LNP'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The newspaper is published by the LNP Media Group, a division of the family-owned Steinman Enterprises. First published under its present name on October 14, 2014, ''LNP'' tra ...

as "one of the most divisive in the district's recent history". Rivera was the district's sixth superintendent in 10 years, and at the time he started Lancaster was facing four multimillion-dollar building renovations, maintenance issues, low test scores and recent instability in leadership. During his tenure, the district improved graduation rates and reading proficiency scores, and saw high-performing student participation in programs designed for improving success in college. He also led the development of a new prekindergarten-to-12th-grade curriculum, an aggressive professional development plan, new teacher observation tools, and a community schools model that provides students free breakfast and lunch, eyeglasses, dental care and medical services. The district, which has a $160 million budget, has also experienced a fund balance growth from $4 million to $9 million during his time. Lancaster was recognized by ''

'' as one of the state's top 20 high schools for academic rigor, and in September 2014, Rivera was honored by the

as a "Champion of Change", and as one of the 10 Hispanic leaders in the United States doing "extraordinary work in education". Rivera was also president of the Pennsylvania League of Urban Schools, and sat on the board of the United Way, Economic Development Company of Lancaster County, and Association of Latino Administrators and Superintendents. In November 2014, Rivera joined five other school districts in filing a lawsuit in the

Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania is one of Pennsylvania's two intermediate appellate courts. The Commonwealth Court's headquarters is in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, with jurisdiction over administrative and civil public law. The Superior ...

against then-Governor Tom Corbett and other state officials, arguing they had "adopted an irrational funding system that does not deliver the essential resources students need".

State education secretary

On January 20, 2015, newly elected Governor

announced Rivera was his nominee to become Pennsylvania Secretary of Education. Wolf said he chose Rivera based in part on his record in improving urban education. Rivera said he would work to restore resources to schools, particularly those with needy populations, and that he would improve opportunities for early childhood learning and preparation for college and careers. The

Pennsylvania State Education Association The Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA) represents more than 187,000 teachers, educational support professionals, counselors, curriculum specialists, librarians, health care workers, school nurses, school dental hygienists, school nur ...

endorsed Rivera's nomination, particularly praising his advocacy for urban school districts. Rivera's nomination was confirmed by the

Pennsylvania State Senate The Pennsylvania State Senate is the upper house of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the Pennsylvania state legislature. The State Senate meets in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. Senators are elected for four year terms, staggered ev ...

on June 3, 2015.

References

External links

Official biography
at the Pennsylvania Department of Education {{DEFAULTSORT:Rivera, Pedro Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Secretaries of Education of Pennsylvania School superintendents in Pennsylvania American school principals Schoolteachers from Pennsylvania Cheyney University of Pennsylvania alumni Penn State College of Education alumni Politicians from Philadelphia Politicians from Lancaster, Pennsylvania American politicians of Puerto Rican descent State superintendents of public instruction of the United States