Agency History

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The Oregon State Constitution of 1859 established a system of common schools, and designated the governor as Superintendent of Public Instruction with the provision that after five years the Legislative Assembly would be allowed to create an independent office for this purpose (Const., art. 8). The Legislative Assembly exercised this right in 1872 by enacting a law designating an elected four-year position, salary, and providing office space in the state capital (O.L. 1872, p. 146).

The 1872 law also created the State Board of Education. From 1872 to 1941 the board consisted of the Governor, the Secretary of State, and the Superintendent of Public Instruction. It was required to meet each January and July and was assigned the power to:

Authorize the use of textbooks.
Prescribe rules for schools.
Sit as a Board of Examination to grant life diplomas and certificates to teachers.
Grant diplomas and certificates without examination to people presenting authentic diplomas or certificates from other states.
Revoke any diploma or certificate for “immoral or other unprofessional conduct” (O.L. 1872, p. 149).

The superintendent also held additional duties to the overall mandate "to exercise a general superintendence of the county and district school officers and the public schools of the state” (O.L. 1872, p. 146). This included the requirement to annually visit public schools in every county statewide for the purpose of inspection, providing advice, and gathering statistics. If possible, they were also required to attend county teacher's institutes and assist in the organization and development of institute work in each county. Additionally, he was to visit the chartered higher education institutions of the state to gather and verify statistical information to be presented to the Legislative Assembly. (O.L. 1899, p. 209-210)

In order to assure proper and standard local administration of education laws, the superintendent prepared and distributed a uniform series of blanks, business forms, and rules and regulations to county school officers. The superintendent also prepared informational circulars directed to school officers that dealt with topics such as school management and teacher responsibilities (O.L. 1899, p. 209-210).

Furthermore, the law authorized the superintendent to supply a list of required studies to be taught in public schools, to supervise the vote among county superintendents for the adoption of a standard series of textbooks, and to annotate and compile school laws ordered published by the Board of Education during his term of office (O.L. 1872, p. 147-148). In 1887 he was designated, in conjunction with the Board of Education, as the final arbiter of all questions and disputes concerning the interpretation of school laws (O.L. 1887, p. 607).

In 1899 the Legislative Assembly rewrote the school laws and gave additional duties and responsibilities to the superintendent. The new law created various boards and commissions to supervise programs and advise on special education concerns. The new law required a state Board of Examiners to create questions for all state teacher certification tests, with the superintendent appointing members. The board filled this role until it was abolished in 1935 (O.L. 1899, p. 209; O.L. 1935, ch. 38). Teachers were required to successfully complete an examination for a specific teaching "class" and show evidence of good moral character. The superintendent exercised the power to grant and revoke certification and a 1911 law established a chain of appeal to the Board of Education (O.L. 1911, ch. 58). During this time period, the superintendent became responsible for administering a mandated examination of 8th grade students. In 1905, the superintendent was made responsible for preparing examination questions; prescribing uniform rules for conducting examinations; and providing blank certificates of graduation to county superintendents (O.L. 1905, ch. 75).

In 1899, specialization in textbook selection became formalized with the creation of the state Board of Textbook Commissioners. From 1901 to 1927 this board was appointed by the governor and reported to the Board of Education. They chose textbooks to be used for six-year time periods (O.L. 1899, p. 87). In 1927, the Board of Education began appointing members to the board (O.L. 1927, ch. 321). Although in later years the board retained its quasi-independent status, its authority was limited in 1953 by the requirement to submit a multiple list of textbooks from which the Board of Education could choose (O.L. 1953, ch. 121).

The Legislative Assembly created the State Board for Vocational Education in 1919. Growing interest in the field as well as federal funds provided by the National Vocational Education Act served as catalysts for this action. Members of this board consisted of the Board of Education (ex-officio) and four additional members appointed by the governor to represent agriculture, labor, employees, and "home interests." The board's responsibilities included cooperating with the federal government and distributing federal funds, administering Oregon laws relating to vocational education, formulating programs for integration into the public schools, certifying vocational education teachers and institutions, and reporting biennially to the Legislative Assembly (O.L. 1919, ch. 348). A 1923 state law required the board to coordinate a statewide program for vocational rehabilitation based on the 1920 federal law designed to speed the return of disabled workers to civil employment (O.L. 1923, ch. 137). The board ceased to function as a separate entity in 1941 when it joined the Board of Education as a division (O.L. 1941, ch. 370).

A specialized commission focusing on immigrants was created in 1925 and placed under the control and supervision of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. The Commission of Americanization consisted of five members who were appointed by the Board of Education and responsible to the superintendent. This commission coordinated the effort to create a standardized course of study in the public schools to "promote and advance the work of Americanization among the immigrant population." The commission also focused on Americanizing adult immigrants through education (O.L. 1925, ch. 317). A 1959 law repealed the statutory authority for the commission and associated functions (O.L. 1959, ch. 121).

In response to the perceived poor physical health of World War I inductees, the superintendent appointed a committee in 1919 to investigate how the schools could promote physical exercise and training. Additionally, a 1919 law made physical education classes compulsory for public school students while a 1925 law gave the superintendent the added duty to supervise the physical examination of elementary school students to discover problems with vision, hearing, or the existence of "external obvious defects." (O.L. 1919, ch. 68; O.L. 1925, ch. 27)

The superintendent also sat on various educationally related boards and commissions. As a member of the Oregon Library Commission, he worked to shape policy and programs in the developing State Library. Part of his responsibility as a member of the Board of Education was to sit on the controlling boards of trustees for higher education institutions. This ended in 1932 when control of state universities and colleges was integrated under the Board of Higher Education.

The power and influence of the superintendent's office continued to increase during the 1925 to 1950 period. The staff size increased to implement new programs and initiatives related to the challenges to the education system posed by the Great Depression, World War II, and increasing popular interest in providing educational services to disabled students. In the context of the added duties, a staff increase from two in 1926 to six in 1941 was seen as inadequate. Funding was the second lowest in the country.

The single largest task for the superintendent's office between 1933 and 1940 was operating the emergency education programs established with federal funds. These programs were directly under the superintendent's control until 1936 when authority was transferred to the office of the Director of Education and Recreation in the federal Works Progress Administration (WPA). The WPA focus consisted primarily of education, recreation, and nursery school programs. Throughout the war years, the superintendent cooperated with various state, local, and federal programs for a number of purposes such as rationing and scrap collection. In 1939 he gained the power to disburse and administer all funds made available from the federal government for educational purposes in Oregon (O.L. 1939, ch. 358).

Enhanced state funding of local school districts further increased the influence of the superintendent. A 1947 law created the Basic School Support Fund that guaranteed each school district a minimum level of state support as well as extra funds for transportation and special programs. The superintendent could deny funds to school districts that did not meet state standards for school buildings, staff, organization and curriculum (O.L. 1947, ch. 357).

Legislation in 1941 and 1943 strongly emphasized education for disabled students and placed the central responsibility for direction and program coordination with the superintendent (O.L. 1941, ch. 480; O.L. 1943, ch. 219). The primary goals of the resulting program were to provide for the "(1) actual instruction and reeducation of children already handicapped, and (2) prevention of the occurrence or development of handicaps." Categories of handicaps included "vision, hearing, speech, crippled, low vitality, and maladjusted" ("The Program for the Education of Handicapped Children," 1945 report to the Legislative Assembly).

The superintendent was involved in various other efforts aimed at enhancing the quality of education in Oregon. Federally funded programs included those related to school lunches, Native American education, and the educational clauses of the "GI Bill of Rights." From 1931 to 1955 the superintendent sat on the Apprenticeship Commission with the state Labor Commissioner, the director of the Board for Vocational Education, and a member of the state Industrial Accident Insurance Commission. The commission had jurisdiction over minors receiving wages in conjunction with learning a trade or business (O.L. 1931, ch. 101; O.L. 1955, ch. 719). The superintendent was also appointed to the Educational Agency for Surplus Property in 1947. This agency acquired surplus property by donation or purchase from the federal government and provided it to tax supported or non-profit private educational institutions (O.L. 1947, ch. 124).

Provisions for the nomination and election of the superintendent also changed during this period. The 1939 Legislative Assembly dropped party affiliations from the process and separate nonpartisan ballots were provided for both primary and general elections (O.L. 1939, ch. 351).

From 1942 to 1961 the office was filled by election on nonpartisan ballots. In 1961 the Legislative Assembly passed a law making the office appointive by the Board of Education. The Oregon Supreme Court declared this unconstitutional in 1965 and a constitutional amendment to place the method of selection in the hands of the Legislative Assembly was defeated in 1966. Another attempt to repeal the constitutional provision requiring election was defeated in 1980.

The 1951 Legislative Assembly dictated that the state's Department of Education would be the central agency responsible for the state's general educational activities. Before this reorganization no legal basis existed for a department despite that the title had been informally used for some time to describe the cooperative actions of the superintendent, the Board of Education, and associated boards and commissions. After the reorganization the superintendent retained power as the leading member of the Board of Education. While the board was a separate body with statutory authority over educational policy, the superintendent as head of the new department remained the obvious controlling force. Additionally, the 1951 reorganization removed the Governor and the Secretary of State from the Board of Education and made each of the seven board positions elected (O.L. 1951, ch. 197).

The increased involvement of the federal government affected the Department of Education. In 1965 federal grant funds amounted to $2.5 million, and increased substantially to $60 million in 1977. Significant federal programs were funded by the National Defense Education Act of 1958, the Vocational Education Act of 1963, the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964, and the comprehensive Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965. The federal government consolidated many of its educational programs with the 1981 Educational Consolidation and Improvement Act. Federal or state law required the establishment of advisory committees to assist the department. Areas covered by these committees included: instructional radio and television, textbooks, private schools, private vocational schools, adult education, migrant education, Title IV-ESEA, handicapped, basic skills, nutrition education, community college operations and construction, community schools, compensatory education, apprentice related training, child development, personnel management, small schools, personal finance and economics, health education, and talented and gifted.

Further growth in the role of the state Department of Education came from the public mandate that the state should develop more general educational opportunities in addition to the higher educational opportunities already provided. From this expectation grew the vocationally oriented community college system. Another movement has been the growth of programs aimed at specific student populations such as Native Americans, the gifted, and disabled.

Both decision-making and funding of education in Oregon have moved toward less local control in recent decades. The state has encouraged consolidation of school districts as an efficiency measure. The involvement of more state funding of education accelerated with the passage of Measure 5 in the 1990 election. This required that strict limits be placed on school funding through property taxes with the difference to be made up from state general fund money. Moreover, the state is now requiring more equality in the amount of money spent per student by districts throughout the state.

The most comprehensive restructuring of public education in the state's history passed the Legislative Assembly in 1991. The Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century grew out of a 1983 presidential commission report titled "A Nation at Risk." The report highlighted problems in education, recommended steps for improvement, and urged a renewed national commitment. In response, the State Board of Education issued "An Action Plan for Excellence" which pressed for improved student learning and program performance. In 1987 the Legislative Assembly established funding to encourage school districts to develop educational goals and assess progress toward those objectives. A 1989 law authorized school districts to restructure their educational programs and services to better meet new goals.

The aim of the 1991 law included raising the academic standards for all students; emphasizing parental involvement in education; giving local schools more freedom from state regulation; encouraging learning opportunity partnerships with local businesses and communities; and assessing student performance and requiring accountability for results. Furthermore, the superintendent is required to issue an "Oregon Report Card" each year in which the state of the public schools and progress toward the new goals are outlined. (O.L. 1991, ch. 693)

The Department of Education began a series of statewide tests in 1991 for grades 3, 5, 8, and 11, where student performance is evaluated against pre-determined standards. The state testing system was strengthened in 1995 when the Legislature revised the Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century, requiring students to achieve a certain standard of performance on the state tests for the CIM and CAM. Each school was also required to establish a 21st Century Schools Council. The Councils are responsible for developing and coordinating improvements for staff professional development, the school’s instructional program, and plans for new program implementation that arise from the new educational standards (O.L. 1995, ch. 660). This was further expanded in 1999 with House Bill 3186, which required an update of common curriculum goals to meet rigorous academic standards, with relevant assessment methods to determine student's knowledge and skills. It also set criteria for the CIM and CAM, and required that at least six broad career endorsement areas of study will be offered (O.L. 1999, ch. 871). Currently, a school district may offer to students a Certificate of Initial Mastery in any of the following: History, Geography, Economics and Civics, Physical Education, Health, the Arts and a Second Language (O.L. 2003, ch. 302). The Certificate of Advanced Mastery rewards students who have obtained a higher level of proficiency in a subject. Schools are required to fully implement their CAM programs by September 2008. To qualify for a Certificate of Advanced Mastery, students must meet the requirements of the Certificate of Initial Mastery for reading, writing, mathematics and science. Then, they need to have an educational plan based on personal, career and academic goals, with an educational profile documenting their progress and achievement, meet career-related learning and extended application standards, and participate in career learning activities. In addition to earning credits, beginning in the 2006-2007 school year, students will need to fulfill some of the CAM requirements simply to graduate (2003-04 Oregon Report Card, 35).

Charter schools in a district offering a CIM and CAM can qualify for these certifications. During the 1995-96 school year, the Department developed new, more rigorous academic content and performance standards for students. The State Board of Education adopted them in late 1996.

In 1999, the "Project Success for Oregon's Educational Future" program was established. This temporary program expired on July 1, 2001 and was designed to make recommendations to improve the environment that impacts student learning, conduct, advancement, safety and participation in learning to the Governor, the Legislative Assembly, the State Board of Education, etc. It was a seven-member committee including the Superintendent of Instruction, Speaker of the House of Representatives, President of the Senate, the Governor, Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor and Industries, Chancellor of the State Board of Higher Education, the Commissioner for Community College Services and fourteen others that represented the public. The project was to primarily focus on: reading and mathematics, class size, updating textbooks and instructional materials, parental involvement, safe learning and teaching environment, the implementation of the Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century, teacher training and educational requirements, and the education of special needs children (O.L. 1999, ch.1080).

In 1999, public charter schools were authorized with the goal of creating "a legitimate avenue for parents, educators and community members to take responsible risks to create new, innovative and more flexible ways of educating children within the public school system." The goals of Oregon's public charter schools include increasing student learning and achievement, increasing the choices of learning opportunities for students, to better meet individual student academic needs and interests, build stronger working relationships between educators, parents and community members, encourage the use of different and innovative learning methods, provide opportunities in small learning environments for flexibility and innovation, with the possibility of applying to traditional public schools, create new professional opportunities for teachers, establish additional forms of accountability for schools, and to create innovative measurement tools (O.L. 1999, ch. 200). Charter schools… were designed to create new, innovative and more flexible ways of educating all children within the public school system (2001-2002 Oregon Report Card, 25). In 2003, charter schools were allowed to participate in the CIM and CAM programs (O.L. 2003, ch. 302).

In 2005, Senate Bill 364 created the temporary Workforce 2005 Task Force for the purpose of examining career and professional technical education in grades 7 through 12 and higher education as a unified system that integrates education with workforce and economic development. This is a temporary program that will last until June 2, 2008 (O.L. 2005, ch. 589). In 2005, the Oregon Legislature increased English and mathematics credits for the class of 2010.

According to the 2003-2004 Oregon Report Card, the greatest challenge facing the Oregon Department of Education is the achievement gap that is reflected in both academic achievement and dropout rates. The federal No Child Left Behind Act, effort to improve academic performance and success for all students, was signed into law on January 8, 2002. It established new requirements for state-level funding, professional development of teachers, assessment of student performance, and reporting student and school information to parents and communities. The act requires that each state provide a plan of action to the federal government.

In June 2008, in an effort to prepare students for life, work and college in the 21st Century, the State Board of Education adopted new requirements for high school graduation. The new Oregon high school diploma includes increased credit requirements, multiple options for students to demonstrate a set of Essential Skills, and the requirement for students to complete personalized learning activities. The new requirements affect graduates in the class of 2012 (next fall’s ninth grade students).

Students will be required to take more rigorous coursework and higher levels of math and science in order to receive a diploma. The number of required credits increases from 22 to 24. In addition, all students will be required to demonstrate that they are proficient in a set of “Essential Skills,” – initially reading, writing, math, and speaking.

From the Oregon Department of Education Administrative Overview, April 2007, Secretary of State, Archives Division.

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