Mick Zais
Mick Zais (b. December 12, 1946) served as the acting secretary of education, following the resignation of Betsy DeVos on January 8, 2021.[1] He was a member of President Donald Trump's (R) administration. He left office on January 20, 2021.
The secretary of education is responsible for promoting "student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access," according to the department's website.[2]
Zais was the 17th South Carolina Superintendent of Education, serving from 2011 to 2015. He was first elected in 2010 and assumed office on January 12, 2011.[3] He did not run for re-election in 2014 and was succeeded in office by Republican Molly Mitchell Spearman on January 14, 2015.[3]
Biography
Zais was the deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Education. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on May 16, 2018, after being nominated by President Donald Trump on Oct. 5, 2017. He served in this position until becoming acting secretary of education following Devos' resignation on January 8, 2021.[4]
Before winning public election as the seventeenth State Superintendent of Education, Zais served as President of Newberry College for ten years.[3] A graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, he served thirty-one years on active duty in the United States Army, retiring as a Brigadier General.[3]
Education
- Bachelor's of Science degree in engineering from West Point
- Master's of Science and Doctorate degrees in social psychology and organizational behavior from the University of Washington
- Master of Arts degree in military history from the School for Advanced Military Studies at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
- Research Fellow in National Security Studies at the National Defense University in Washington, D.C.[3]
Political career
Acting secretary of education (2021)
Zais became the acting secretary of education following the resignation of Betsy DeVos on January 8, 2021. He served until January 20, 2021.
Deputy secretary of education (2018-2021)
Zais was the deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Education. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on May 16, 2018, after being nominated by President Donald Trump on Oct. 5, 2017.
Superintendent of education (2011-2015)
Zais was first elected in 2010 and assumed office on January 12, 2011.[3]
In February 2013, the South Carolina State Legislature began considering a bill that would make the position of state superintendent an appointed post. Zais said he supported the change.[5]
Common Core
South Carolina had adopted the Common Core Standards but in June 2014, Governor Nikki Haley signed legislation requiring the state to replace the Common Core standards with new ones written by the state Department of Education after the 2014-2015 school year. For that year, the Common Core standards will remain in place.[6] This bill replacing Common Core with state-written standards also included a role for the South Carolina State Legislature in reviewing and approving these new standards to prevent the restoration of Common Core standards under a different name.[6] Haley had long opposed Common Core as had outgoing Superintendent Mick Zais, who specifically warned against his eventual successor putting Common Core back in place through such a method.[7]
Noteworthy events
Dispute with Board of Education
A showdown between Zais and the state Board of Education began in early December 2011. Upset at Zais for refusing to seek federal grant money earlier in the year, the Board passed a rule that the Superintendent was to report monthly on federal grants available to the state. Zais responded by saying that he doesn't answer to the Board and would not comply with the rule.[8] The board held a meeting on December 8 to resolve the issue, but Zais did not attend. According to his spokesman, Zais was on a "long scheduled" vacation. The board said that if the matter could not be dealt with by December 23, they would take Zais to court.[9]
Elections
2014
Zais was eligible to run for re-election as South Carolina Superintendent of Education in 2014, but announced in December, 2013 that he would not seek a second term.
“After much prayer and thoughtful consideration with my family, I have decided not to seek re-election as state superintendent of education,” Zaid said in a statement. “This was a very difficult decision. I was preparing for, and looking forward to, a re-election campaign. I’m confident I would have run a strong campaign and would have been re-elected.” “My campaign was never a stepping stone to higher office. Rather, it was the culmination of a lifetime of service.”[10]
2010
Zais was first elected South Carolina Superintendent of Education in 2010 and assumed office on January 12, 2011.[3]
| South Carolina Superintendent of Education, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Mick Zais |
51.3% | 680,787 | |
| Democratic | Frank Holleman | 43.1% | 572,508 | |
| Libertarian | Tim Moultrie | 2.7% | 35,362 | |
| Green | Doretha A. Bull | 1.6% | 20,787 | |
| Independent | Tony Fayyazi | 1.4% | 18,107 | |
| Write-In | Various | 0% | 513 | |
| Total Votes | 1,328,064 | |||
| Election results via South Carolina State Election Commission | ||||
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
See also
- U.S. Department of Education
- Superintendent of Schools
- South Carolina Superintendent of Education
- Governor of South Carolina
- South Carolina school districts
- South Carolina Department of Education
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- U.S. Department of Education
- Official campaign website
- Facebook profile
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Campaign contributions: 2012, 2010
Footnotes
- ↑ The New York Times, "Betsy DeVos, education secretary, is second cabinet member to resign," January 7, 2021
- ↑ Ed.gov, "About Ed," accessed June 4, 2018
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 South Carolina State Department of Education, "State Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman," accessed January 14, 2015 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "bio" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ U.S. Department of Education, "Dr. Mitchell M. Zais, Deputy Secretary of Education — Biography," accessed January 8, 2021
- ↑ The Herald, "SC Senate Panel: Let governor choose state schools chief," February 14, 2013
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Education Week State EdWatch, "S.C. Governor Signs Bill Requiring State to Replace Common Core," June 4, 2014
- ↑ The Post and Courier, "Zais: Those who say SC will keep Common Core 'have never read the standards'" June 10, 2014
- ↑ GoUpstate, "SC education chief says he won't report to board," December 6, 2011
- ↑ The Herald, "State ed. Board may sue Zais over reporting," December 9, 2011
- ↑ The State, ELECTION 2014: Mick Zais won't seek re-election for SC education superintendent, December 13, 2013
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Betsy DeVos |
U.S. Department of Education (acting) 2021 |
Succeeded by NA |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Jim Rex (D) |
South Carolina Superintendent of Education 2011-2015 |
Succeeded by Molly Mitchell Spearman (R) |
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State of South Carolina Columbia (capital) |
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