Jennifer McCormick

Jennifer McCormick is an educator and the Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction. She defeated the incumbent Glenda Ritz on November 8, 2016. She received 52.97% of the vote to Ritz's 47.03% of the vote.

Jennifer McCormick
44th Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction
In office January 9, 2017 – January 11, 2021
Governor	Eric Holcomb
Preceded by	Glenda Ritz
Succeeded by	Katie Jenner (as Secretary of Education)
Personal details
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Trent
Children	1
Education	Purdue University (BA) Ball State University (MA) Indiana State University (PhD)

Biography

McCormick began her career as a special education teacher. She later worked as a middle school language arts teacher from 1996-2004. Then she became principal of Yorktown Elementary School in 2004. In 2007, she became the assistant superintendent of Yorktown Community schools and served in that position until she was selected as superintendent in 2010. She serves on the boards for Ivy Tech East Central Region, the Indiana Association of School Business Officials, and Delaware County Youth Salutes. In 2014, she was invited to the National Connected Superintendents Summit at the White House in Washington D.C.[1]

Election

McCormick was chosen by the Indiana Republican Party as the nominee for the Superintendent of Public Instruction on June 11, 2016. At her convention speech, McCormick said Indiana must continue to reject national Common Core learning standards. She said "days of reckless testing must end" and that she knows what it takes to recruit the best teachers.[2] McCormick and Ritz had one debate on October 17, 2016 in Fort Wayne, Indiana.[3] McCormick defeated Ritz for the position of Superintendent on November 8, 2016.[4]

Indiana 2016 Superintendent of Public Instruction Election[5][6]

Candidate	Affiliation	Support	Outcome
Jennifer McCormick	Republican	1,423,042	52.97%
Glenda Ritz	Democrat	1,240,474	47.03%

Tenure

Jennifer McCormick at Bloomfield High School during the final Workplace Simulation Project Day

McCormick ran as a Republican candidate for Indiana superintendent of public instruction. She defeated Dawn Wooten and won the Republican nomination at the state party convention on June 11. McCormick defeated incumbent Glenda Ritz in the Indiana superintendent of schools election. The theme of her campaign was to remove politics from education and that the superintendent should again work in tandem with the Department of Education. It also stated including support for improving the current state assessment program and providing teachers with quality tools to enhance instruction. A primary responsibility for the superintendent will be to implement the Every Student Succeeds Act, a federal education law that replaces the No Child Left Behind Act signed into law by President George W. Bush in 2002.[7]

Personal

Dr. McCormick is married to Trent, a public school science teacher and longtime wrestling coach. They have one son, Cael, who attends The United States Military Academy.[8]

Education

• B.A. elementary education, Purdue University (1993)
• M.A. special education, Ball State University (1999)
• Ph.D. educational leadership, Indiana State University (2011)

Awards

• Outstanding Contributor to Education Award from the Muncie Delaware County Chamber of Commerce
• 2013: Person of the Year, Yorktown Chamber of Commerce

References

1. "Jennifer McCormick - Ballotpedia".
2. "Indiana GOP pick nominees for Attorney General and State School Superintendent". 11 June 2016.
3. News, WFYI (6 October 2016). "Ritz, McCormick To Debate For State Superintendent Race".
4. "Republican challenger McCormick wins over Ritz".
5. "Indiana Superintendent of Schools election, 2016 - Ballotpedia".
6. "Election Results". in.gov. November 8, 2016.
7. Balonon-Rosen, Peter (8 November 2016). "McCormick Ousts Ritz To Win State Superintendent Race".
8. http://www.doe.in.gov/sites/default/files/superintendent/mccormick-bio-shortened-2.pdf