Philip Wagner, currently superintendent at Johnstown Monroe schools outside Columbus, was appointed the new state superintendent of public instruction at the State Board of Education of Ohio.
Many of the duties of the State Board of Education and the state superintendent were reduced by the Ohio Legislature in 2023 and subsumed into the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce. But Wagner, a longtime educator with roots in Northeast Ohio, said he still believes the role is important.
"One of the things that we want to do is continue to work with the department," Wagner said in an interview Tuesday. "I have some close ties there, and we're going to make sure that our roles are appropriate where they should be. But again, celebrating education is something we all can do, and trying to get more people into the educator pipelines is something that we all could do."
The Board of Education and the superintendent oversee licensure for educators, teacher evaluations, educator discipline, annual awards for teachers and a "Resident Educator Program" that provides mentors to early-career teachers.
Wagner said that last program is especially important, noting teacher recruitment and retention will be a goal of his amid an ongoing teacher shortage.
"How do we deepen those pools and deepen them not only in the numbers, but also the quality? Because we need good people in education," he said.
Wagner grew up in Bedford Heights. He got his start as a school psychologist at Cleveland Metropolitan School District and at Solon City Schools. He moved into school administrator roles starting in Hudson and Beachwood schools, and was the superintendent at Licking Heights School District prior to coming to Johnstown-Monroe Local Schools.
Wagner said workforce development is a key part of Ohio's education strategy. Some of his time as superintendent at Johnstown-Monroe had been spent preparing the district for the new $28 billion Intel semiconductor being constructed in the area, although that project has been delayed significantly.
"The idea was to look at putting systems in place because the smaller relatively rural suburban school district would be growing," Wagner explained. "And we did all of that, which is exciting. We have growth plans set up in terms of programming and facilities."
Wagner will move into the state superintendent role in late July. Jason Wagner, unrelated, who is the agency's chief legal counsel, will serve as interim superintendent until then.
Phillip Wagner is the second superintendent hired since the board split from the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce. That agency took over the board’s academic policy powers and dealing with the daily business of the state's more than 600 school districts, The Ohio Statehouse News Bureau reports. The State Board of Education is made up of 19 members, 11 of them elected and eight appointed by Ohio Governor Mike DeWine. The director of the ODEW is appointed by DeWine.
