The state superintendent of public instruction (SPI) of

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

is the nonpartisan (originally partisan) elected executive officer of the

California Department of Education The California Department of Education is an agency within the Government of California that oversees public education. The department oversees funding and testing, and holds local educational agencies accountable for student achievement. Its st ...

. The SPI directs all functions of the Department of Education, executes policies set by the

California State Board of Education The California State Board of Education is the governing and policy-making body of the California Department of Education. The State Board of Education sets K-12 education policy in the areas of standards, instructional materials, assessment, and ...

, 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 Tony Krajewski Thurmond (born August 21, 1968) is an American politician and educator who is the 28th and current California State Superintendent of Public Instruction. Thurmond was narrowly elected Superintendent of Public Instruction in 2018 o ...

. Under Section 2 of Article 9 of the

California Constitution The Constitution of California ( es, Constitución de California) is the primary organizing law for the U.S. state of California, describing the duties, powers, structures and functions of the government of California. California's original co ...

, the Superintendent must be directly "elected by the qualified electors of the State at each gubernatorial election." But the State Board of Education is not directly elected, and its members are not appointed by the superintendent. They are appointed by the governor subject to the approval of the state Senate. Therefore, if the governor's party has a majority in the Senate and the governor has different views on state education policy than the superintendent, the governor could put the superintendent in the position of chairing a board of members with opposing views. The California Constitutional Revision Commission proposed that the superintendent should be converted from an elected official into an appointed one, but the Commission's proposal was rejected by the state electorate in 1968.

List of California State Superintendents of Public Instruction

References

External links

* {{California statewide elected officials 1851 establishments in California

List of California State Superintendents of Public Instruction

See also

References

External links