Superintendent (education)

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In education, a superintendent (also known as a chief school administrator in many states) is an individual that has executive oversight and administration rights, usually within an educational entity or organization.

[edit] In the United States

Many state departments of education in the United States refer to their administrators as superintendents.

Generally, school district superintendents are selected by a school board of a local school district. They are typically given overall responsibility for personnel selection and appointment, preparation of operating budgets, and implementation of school policies and regulations.

As the senior administrator of a school district, the superintendent primarily supervises public schools in the district; evaluates performance of teachers and, in some cases, recruits and dismisses school staff; and acts as a check on the power of school principals. The superintendent may also hold a title of a Board Chair Officer on the school board.^{[citation needed]}

Most states give school superintendents membership on the board of education of their school district, but they usually cannot vote as members of the board. ^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Other countries

The term 'superintendent' is rarely used for education in Great Britain (possibly to avoid confusion with the police rank); in most Local Education Authorities the equivalent title is Chief Education Officer.