Key Ohio Education Agencies Now Without Permanent Leaders

February 8, 2013 | 11:00 AM

By Molly Bloom

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The state agencies that oversee Ohio K-12 and higher education are now without permanent leaders.

The Ohio Department of Education has been without a permanent state superintendent of public instruction since former state superintendent Stan Heffner resigned in August.

His deputy, Michael Sawyers, now serves as acting state superintendent. But Sawyers  has applied for at least three other Columbus-area school district superintendent positions recently.

The state Board of Education is conducting a national search for a new state superintendent and expects to interview candidates in March. No timeline has been set for hiring the next state superintendent.

Ohio has been without a state chancellor, the person responsible for carrying out state higher education policy, since last week, when former Chancellor Jim Petro retired. A vice chancellor, Stephanie Davidson, is serving as interim chancellor.

A spokesperson for the governor’s office told the Cleveland Plain Dealer there is no timetable for appointing a new, permanent chancellor.