Different U.S. states use different job titles for the person in charge of education in the state government. These titles include Secretary of Education, State Superintendent of Education, Superintendent of Public Instruction, Commissioner of Education, and Director of Education.[1] Thirteen states have an education executive directly elected by voters, but in most states they are appointed, by the governor, state legislature, or a state board.
The following are state education agencies as identified by the Council of Chief State School Officers.
| State | State agency | Chief state school officer | Elected | Service began | Name |
|---|
| Alabama | Alabama Department of Education | Alabama Superintendent of Education | No | 2016 | Michael Sentance |
| Alaska | Alaska Department of Education & Early Development | Alaska Commissioner of Education & Early Development | No | 2016 | Michael Johnson |
| Arizona | Arizona Department of Education | Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction | Yes | 2019 | Kathy Hoffman |
| Arkansas | Arkansas Department of Education | Arkansas Commissioner of Education | No | 2015 | Johnny Key |
| California | California Department of Education | California Superintendent of Public Instruction | Yes | 2019 | Tony Thurmond |
| Colorado | Colorado Department of Education | Colorado Commissioner of Education | No | 2016 | Katy Anthes |
| Connecticut | Connecticut Department of Education | Connecticut Commissioner of Education | No | 2015 | Dianna Wentzell |
| Delaware | Delaware Department of Education | Delaware Secretary of Education | No | 2017 | Susan Bunting |
| Florida | Florida Department of Education | Florida Commissioner of Education | No | 2013 | Pam Stewart |
| Georgia | Georgia Department of Education | State Superintendent of Schools | Yes | 2015 | Richard Woods |
| Hawaii | Hawaii Department of Education | Hawaii Superintendent of Education | No | 2010 | Kathryn Matayoshi |
| Idaho | Idaho State Department of Education | Idaho Superintendent of Public Instruction | Yes | 2015 | Sherri Ybarra |
| Illinois | Illinois State Board of Education | Illinois Superintendent of Education | No | 2015 | Tony Smith |
| Indiana | Indiana Department of Education | Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction | Yes | 2017 | Jennifer McCormick |
| Iowa | Iowa Department of Education | Iowa Director of Education | No | 2013 | Ryan Wise |
| Kansas | Kansas State Department of Education | Kansas Interim Commissioner of Education | No | 2015 | Randy Watson |
| Kentucky | Kentucky Department of Education | Kentucky Commissioner of Education | No | 2015 | Stephen Pruitt |
| Louisiana | Louisiana Department of Education | Louisiana Superintendent of Education | No | 2012 | John White |
| Maine | Maine Department of Education | Maine Commissioner of Education | No | 2016 | Robert Hasson |
| Maryland | Maryland State Department of Education | Maryland State Superintendent of Schools | No | 2016 | Karen B. Salmon |
| Massachusetts | Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education | Massachusetts Secretary of Education | No | 2015 | Jim Peyser |
| Michigan | Michigan Department of Education | Michigan Superintendent of Public Instruction | No | 2015 | Brian J. Whiston |
| Minnesota | Minnesota Department of Education | Minnesota Commissioner of Education | No | 2010 | Brenda Cassellius |
| Mississippi | Mississippi Department of Education | Mississippi Superintendent of Education | No | 2013 | Carey M. Wright |
| Missouri | Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education | Missouri Commissioner of Education | No | 2015 | Roger Dorson (Interim) |
| Montana | Montana Office of Public Instruction | Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction | Yes | 2017 | Elsie Arntzen |
| Nebraska | Nebraska Department of Education | Nebraska Commissioner of Education | No | 2014 | Matthew Blomstedt |
| Nevada | Nevada Department of Education | Nevada Superintendent of Public Instruction | No | 2015 | Steve Canavero |
| New Hampshire | New Hampshire Department of Education | New Hampshire Commissioner of Education | No | 2017 | Frank Edelblut |
| New Jersey | New Jersey Department of Education | New Jersey Commissioner of Education | No | 2018 | Lamont Repollet |
| New Mexico | New Mexico Public Education Department | New Mexico Secretary of Education | No | 2010 | Hanna Skandera |
| New York | New York State Education Department | New York State Education Commissioner | No | 2015 | MaryEllen Elia |
| North Carolina | North Carolina Department of Public Instruction | North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction | Yes | 2017 | Mark Johnson |
| North Dakota | North Dakota Department of Public Instruction | North Dakota Superintendent of Public Instruction | Yes | 2013 | Kirsten Baesler |
| Ohio | Ohio State Board of Education | Ohio Superintendent of Public Instruction | No | 2016 | Paolo DeMaria |
| Oklahoma | Oklahoma State Department of Education | Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction | Yes | 2015 | Joy Hofmeister |
| Oregon | Oregon Department of Education | Oregon Superintendent of Public Instruction | No | 2015 | Salam Noor |
| Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania Department of Education | Pennsylvania Secretary of Education | No | 2015 | Pedro Rivera |
| Rhode Island | Rhode Island Department of Elementary and Secondary Education | Rhode Island Commissioner of Education | No | 2015 | Ken Wagner |
| South Carolina | South Carolina Department of Education | South Carolina Superintendent of Education | Yes | 2015 | Molly Spearman |
| South Dakota | South Dakota Department of Education | South Dakota Secretary of Education | No | 2011 | Melody Schopp |
| Tennessee | Tennessee Department of Education | Tennessee Commissioner of Education | No | 2015 | Candice McQueen |
| Texas | Texas Education Agency | Texas Commissioner of Education | No | 2015 | Mike Morath |
| Utah | Utah State Office of Education | Utah Superintendent of Public Instruction | No | 2016 | Sydnee Dickson |
| Vermont | Vermont Agency of Education | Vermont Secretary of Education | No | 2014 | Rebecca Holcombe |
| Virginia | Virginia Department of Education | Virginia Superintendent of Public Instruction | No | 2014 | Steven R. Staples |
| Washington | Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction | Washington Superintendent of Public Instruction | Yes | 2017 | Chris Reykdal |
| West Virginia | West Virginia Department of Education | West Virginia State Superintendent of Schools | No | 2017 | Steven L. Paine |
| Wisconsin | Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction | Wisconsin Superintendent of Public Instruction | Yes | 2019 | Carolyn Stanford Taylor |
| Wyoming | Wyoming Department of Education | Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction | Yes | 2015 | Jillian Balow |
| American Samoa | American Samoa Department of Education | American Samoa Director of Education | No | 2017 | Ruth Matagi-Tofiga |
| District of Columbia | District of Columbia State Board of Education | District of Columbia Superintendent of Education | No | 2015 | Hanseul Kang |
| Guam | Guam Department of Education | Guam Superintendent of Education | No | 2016 | Jon Fernandez |
| Puerto Rico | Puerto Rico Department of Education | Puerto Rico Secretary of Education | No | 2017 | Julia Keleher |
| U.S. Virgin Islands | U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Education | U.S. Virgin Islands Commissioner of Education | No | 2016 | Sharon McCollum |
1. ^"Chief State School Officer Addresses", Council of Chief State School Officers. Retrieved 11/1/08.