Rod Paige facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Rod Paige
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Official portrait
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| 7th United States Secretary of Education | |
| In office January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2005 |
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| President | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Richard Riley |
| Succeeded by | Margaret Spellings |
| Superintendent of the Houston Independent School District | |
| In office 1994–2001 |
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| Preceded by | Yvonne Gonzales (interim) |
| Succeeded by | Kaye Stripling (interim) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | June 17, 1933 Monticello, Mississippi, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouses |
Gloria Crawford
(m. 1956–1982)Stephanie Nellons |
| Children | 1 |
| Education | Jackson State University (BA) Indiana University Bloomington (MA, EdD) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch/service |  United States Navy |
| Years of service | 1955–1957 |
Roderick Raynor Paige (born June 17, 1933) is an American educator and politician. He served as the 7th United States Secretary of Education from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African American to hold this important position.
Paige grew up in Mississippi. He started his career as a college football coach and teacher. Later, he became a college dean and a school superintendent.
He was with President George W. Bush at a school in Florida on September 11, 2001. That day, they received the news about the attacks on the World Trade Center.
Paige announced his resignation on November 15, 2004. He had led the President's education plans for four years. Margaret Spellings took over his role in January 2005.
From November 2016 to June 2017, Paige was the interim president of Jackson State University. This was the university where he had studied.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Paige was born in Monticello, Mississippi. His parents were both public school teachers. He earned his first degree from Jackson State University in Jackson, Mississippi. He then received two more degrees from Indiana University Bloomington. These degrees were in physical education.
Career Highlights
Serving in the Military and Coaching
Paige served in the United States Navy from 1955 to 1957. After his military service, he taught and coached. He worked at high schools and colleges in Mississippi from 1957 to 1963.
From 1964 to 1968, Paige was the head football coach at Jackson State University. He helped recruit and coach Lem Barney. Barney later became a famous player for the Detroit Lions. Paige also coached football at Texas Southern University from 1971 to 1975. He was also the athletic director there.
Leading in Houston Education
Paige moved to Houston in the 1970s. He helped his community remove a dump near their homes. The Texas Supreme Court supported the residents in this effort.
He taught at Texas Southern University from 1980 to 1984. In 1984, he became the Dean of the College of Education. He held this position until 1994. He also created a research center at the university. This center focused on improving education in city schools.
Improving Houston Schools
From 1989 to 1994, Paige was a leader on the Board of Education for the Houston Independent School District (HISD). He helped write a plan for the district. This plan aimed to improve schools by giving them more local control. It also focused on better teaching and holding schools accountable.
Paige also helped create a police department for HISD. This department focused on making schools safer. It is the only school district police department in the country to receive a special accreditation.
In 1994, Paige became the superintendent of HISD schools. As superintendent, he started programs to get advice from businesses and the community. He also created charter schools. These schools had more freedom in choosing staff and materials.
He made sure HISD teachers earned good salaries. He also started a system where senior staff members kept their jobs based on their performance. Teachers could also earn extra pay for helping students improve their test scores.
Under Paige, HISD also worked with private schools. This helped teach students when public schools were too crowded.
Many people called the improvements in Houston schools under Paige the "Houston Miracle." Student test scores went up during his time.
Serving as Secretary of Education
Paige served as the Secretary of Education from 2001 to 2005. He worked under US President George W. Bush. He helped create the No Child Left Behind law. This law set new standards for schools across the country. Paige's department was in charge of putting this law into action. The ideas for this law were partly based on the successes of HISD under Paige.
During his time, the Department of Education received "clean" audits for three years in a row. This meant their financial records were in good order. Before 2001, this had only happened once in the department's history.
Paige also suggested changes to rules about Title IX. These changes aimed to give schools more flexibility. This allowed them to create single-sex classes or schools for younger students.
Other Activities and Recognition
Paige has been involved in many other groups. He served on committees for the Texas Education Agency. He was also part of the National Commission for Employment Policy. He is a member of the NAACP National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
Honors and Awards
Two schools have been renamed in Rod Paige's honor. James Bowie Elementary School in Houston is now Rod Paige Elementary School. The middle school in his hometown of Monticello, Mississippi, is now Rod Paige Middle School.
The University of Houston gave Paige an honorary doctoral degree in 2000. Indiana University Bloomington also gave him an honorary degree in 2017.
Images for kids
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Official portrait of Rod Paige
