Cindy Hill (Wyoming)
Cindy Hill is the former Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction. A Republican, Hill was first elected in 2010, and was sworn in the following January.[1] She opted not to seek re-election in 2014 in order to run for governor. Hill left office on January 5, 2015, when her term expired. She was succeeded by Jillian Balow (R).[2]
Hill was a candidate for Governor of Wyoming in 2014. Her announcement came soon after a law was passed that temporarily transferred the superintendent's duties to a new position.[3][4] Hill ultimately succeeded in having that law overturned and regained the original powers of the superintendent, but she lost the Republican nomination in the August 19 gubernatorial primary to incumbent Matt Mead.
Biography
Hill has over 20 years of professional experience in education related fields. During this time, she taught in the classroom and then served as a junior high school principal.[5]
Education
- Bachelor's degree, University of Wyoming
- Master's degree, University of Michigan[5]
Political career
Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction (2011-2015)
Hill served in this position from 2011 to 2015.[6]
Duties changed by legislature
On January 25, 2013, the Wyoming State Legislature passed a bill stripping the superintendent of most administrative duties. Gov. Matt Mead (R) signed it into law on January 29. The superintendent was removed as head of the Department of Education and replaced by Jim Rose, an interim director appointed by the governor. Under the bill, the position of superintendent would remain but be separate from the Department of Education.[7]
After he had finished signing the bill, Superintendent Hill served Governor Mead with a lawsuit arguing the move was unconstitutional as it violated the consent of the people and nullified their vote.[8] The state Supreme Court began hearing oral arguments in the case on August 20, 2013.[9]
Hill's lawsuit was ultimately successful and, in April 2014, the law was found to be unconstitutional. Hill's old office and duties were restored to her as they had been prior to the law's passage.[4]
Special investigation
On July 12, 2013, the Management Council of the Wyoming State Legislature voted to create a special investigative committee to determine whether or not Hill managed the state Education Department correctly prior to the legislature removing her as the department's head. The investigation stemmed from a report that alleged Hill's possible misuse of the state airplane, improper spending of federal funds and complaints of a hostile work environment.[10]
The House Rules Committee will serve as the special committee. Hill objected to this move as all 13 members of the committee voted in favor of Senate File 104, the legislation that stripped the superintendent of her main duties. The committee started its investigation on August 7, 2013.[11][12]
In July 2014, the legislature reported back on this investigation.[13] The report rebuked Hill for "misconduct in office" and recommended several steps to increase accountability in state government departments, such as the Department of Education, but did not call for Hill's impeachment.[13] Hill responded by saying "A 'rebuke' means that they are conceding that I did nothing wrong," and accusing the investigating committee of political motives.[13]
Elections
2014
- See also: Wyoming gubernatorial election, 2014
On January 29, 2013, Hill announced that she was running for Governor of Wyoming in 2014. Hill, a Republican, was prompted to enter the race after incumbent Matt Mead (R) signed a bill relegating the elected office of Wyoming Superintendent of Education to a ceremonial position, reassigning leadership over the State Department of Education to the newly created position of director of education, who would be appointed by the governor. Hill filed a lawsuit against the state challenging the constitutionality of the law.[14] She said her decision to run for governor was driven by the swell of public support she received in response to the lawsuit.[15] Hill ultimately succeeded in having the law overturned and regained the original powers of the Superintendent, however she did not win the Republican nomination in the primary on August 19.
Primary results
| Wyoming Gubernatorial Republican Primary, 2014 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
 Matt Mead |
54.8% | 53,673 | ||
| Taylor Haynes | 32.2% | 31,532 | ||
| Cindy Hill | 12.7% | 12,464 | ||
| Write-in votes | 0.2% | 215 | ||
| Total Votes | 97,884 | |||
| Election results via Wyoming Secretary of State. | ||||
2010
Hill won election to this position on November 2, 2010. She defeated Mike Massie (D) in the general election[6]
| Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Cindy Hill |
59.2% | 113,026 | |
| Democratic | Mike Massie | 37.6% | 71,772 | |
| - | Write-Ins | 0.1% | 250 | |
| - | Over Votes | 0% | 66 | |
| - | Under Votes | 3% | 5,708 | |
| Total Votes | 190,822 | |||
| Election results via Wyoming Secretary of State | ||||
Campaign contributions
The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may not represent 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, and 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.
| Cindy Hill (Wyoming) campaign contribution history | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Office | Result | Contributions | |
| 2014 | WY Governor |  |
$158,345 | |
| 2010 | WY Superintendent of Public Instruction |  |
$246,748 | |
| 2000 | WY House of Representatives | |
$7,848 | |
| Grand total raised | $412,941 | |||
| Source: [[16] Follow the Money] | ||||
2010–2014
Ballotpedia collects information on campaign donors for each year in which a candidate or incumbent is running for election. See the table below for more information about the campaign donors who supported Cindy Hill.[17] Click [show] for more information.
| Cindy Hill Campaign Contributions | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 Wyoming Governor | 2010 Wyoming Superintendent of Education | ||||||||||||||||||
| Total raised | $158,345 | $244,648 | |||||||||||||||||
| Total raised by opponents | $692,157 (R-primary) | $216,739 (Dem) | |||||||||||||||||
| Top 5 contributors | Drake D. Hill | $112,800 | Cindy Hill | $60,200 | |||||||||||||||
| Cynthia Jo (Cindy) Hill | $10,486 | Cindy & Drake Hill | $58,077 | ||||||||||||||||
| Theresa C. Doenz | $1,000 | Building A Better Wyoming PAC | $10,000 | ||||||||||||||||
| William J. Doenz | $1,000 | Drake Hill | $7,441 | ||||||||||||||||
| Lynn Call | $1,000 | Republican | $5,000 | ||||||||||||||||
| Individuals | $156,069 | $78,546 | |||||||||||||||||
| Institutions | $0 ($2,276 other) | $21,150 | |||||||||||||||||
| In-state donations | $158,324 | $237,405 | |||||||||||||||||
| Out-of-state donations | $21 | $6,300 | |||||||||||||||||
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Hill lives with her husband Drake in Cheyenne, Wyo., with whom she has a son.[5]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Cindy + Hill + Wyoming + Education"
See also
- Superintendent of Schools
- Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction
- Wyoming Director of the Department of Education
- Rich Crandall
- Wyoming school districts
- Wyoming Department of Education
External links
- Social media:
- Profile at Wikipedia
- Campaign contributions at Follow The Money
- Collected news and commentary at The Huffington Post
- Campaign contributions by year: 2012, 2010, 2000
Footnotes
- ↑ Wyoming Department of Education, "Superintendent of Education," accessed June 22, 2012
- ↑ Wyoming Department of Education, "Superintendent WDE Jillian Balow," accessed January 6, 2015
- ↑ Wyoming Tribune Eagle, "Hill declares for governor," February 1, 2013
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Casper Star-Tribune, "Cindy Hill back in charge of Wyoming Education Department," April 21, 2014
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Wyoming Department of Education, "Superintendent Cindy Hill," accessed January 11, 2013
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Wyoming Secretary of State, "Statewide Candidates Official Summary," accessed January 11, 2013
- ↑ Billings Gazette, "Legislature passes Wyoming school chief duties bill," January 25, 2013
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedsigned - ↑ K2 Radio, "Hill Lawsuit Argues Education Powers," July 23, 2013
- ↑ Casper Star Tribune, "Wyoming legislators authorize Cindy Hill special investigation," July 13, 2013
- ↑ Casper Star Tribune, "Wyoming schools chief Cindy Hill gets a court date, investigations panel," July 19, 2013
- ↑ Wyoming Tribune Eagle, " Hill investigation panel ready to go," July 23, 2013
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Casper Star-Tribune, "Lawmakers rebuke Hill for misconduct in office," July 23, 2014
- ↑ The Star-Tribune, "Wyoming Gov. Mead signs superintendent bill into law; Hill sues," January 29, 2013
- ↑ KJAB AM Radio, Cheyanne, "Hill Announces Run for Governor in 2014," January 29, 2013
- ↑ Follow the Money, " Career fundraising for Hill, Cynthia Jo (Cindy)," accessed July 27, 2015
- ↑ Follow the Money.org, "Home," accessed May 7, 2021
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Jim McBride (R) |
Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction 2011-2015 |
Succeeded by Jillian Balow (R) |
| ||||||||||||||
 |
State of Wyoming Cheyenne (capital) |
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