Louisiana Superintendent of Education John White is resigning his post as the top K-12 education official in the state, effective March 11.
White submitted his resignation in a letter to the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education today after earlier media reports identified his pending decision. He had been the longest-serving superintendent in the nation.
“Eight years ago this week, the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education bestowed on me the greatest blessing and privilege of my career, naming me state superintendent of education. I write today to advise you that, with great pride in all achieved over those eight years, I will be vacating the position March 11, 2020, and to recommend that the board identify a new state superintendent,” White says in the letter.
He is expected to continue serving in the position until then and will “assist as requested.”
White took over the helm of the Department of Education in 2012, appointed by BESE with the support of then-Gov. Bobby Jindal. He was nearly ousted in 2016 when he didn’t receive enough votes from the board to be reappointed. But because there also had not been enough votes to dismiss him, White shifted to a month-to-month contract—a heavily criticized move that was the subject of lawsuits and garnered the ire of Gov. John Bel Edwards.
In 2018, a proposed bill to remove White was ultimately rejected by the Senate Education Committee.
White’s time in office was marked with controversy over his support of Common Core and school vouchers.
“In this age of social division and of even occasional disdain for public service, I am deeply proud to have served alongside some of the most skilled and principled lawmakers, board members, and public servants in our nation,” White’s letter says.
A new BESE Board is being sworn into office next week, with a majority of LABI-endorsed members, and was expected to increase White’s chances of earning a contract extension.
“Your leadership, and your selection of state superintendent, must continue our state’s march toward a fair and just education system, and toward a more perfect Louisiana,” White says to board members.
The letter cites the department’s work on early childhood education investments, curriculum, teacher support, moving teacher education to the classroom, revamping career and technical education, opening financial aid planning to high school graduates, and work to improve struggling schools.
Before White was named superintendent, he served as superintendent of the Louisiana Recovery School District. He also worked under former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg—who is now vying for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination—as deputy chancellor for the New York City Department of Education, and served as executive director of Teach For America in Chicago and New Jersey.
Gov. John Bel Edwards released a statement following White’s announced resignation, saying that though the two did not always agree on policy, Edwards appreciates White’s contributions to the state. By working together, teachers received their first pay raise in a decade, MFP funding increased and additional funding was provided for early childhood education, Edwards said.
