Former Education Secretary Rod Paige dies at 92
Rod Paige, the first African American U.S. education secretary and a key architect of the No Child Left Behind law, died Tuesday at age 92, former President George W. Bush announced. Paige led the Education Department from 2001 to 2005, implementing nationwide testing and accountability provisions modeled on his Houston reforms; no cause of death was provided.
đ Key Facts
- Death announced by former President George W. Bush; no cause given
- Paige served as U.S. education secretary from 2001â2005 under Bush
- Helped implement 2002 No Child Left Behind law establishing universal testing and school sanctions
đ Relevant Data
In fall 2022, the racial/ethnic distribution of U.S. public school students was 44% White, 15% Black, 29% Hispanic, 5.5% Asian, 5% two or more races, 0.9% American Indian/Alaska Native, and less than 0.5% Pacific Islander.
Racial/Ethnic Enrollment in Public Schools â National Center for Education Statistics
In 2022, the average NAEP grade 4 mathematics score was 245 for White students, 216 for Black students (29-point gap), 224 for Hispanic students (21-point gap), and 259 for Asian students (14 points higher than White).
2022 Mathematics Snapshot Report: Nation Grade 4 â National Center for Education Statistics
In 2022, the average NAEP grade 8 mathematics score was 284 for White students, 252 for Black students (32-point gap), 261 for Hispanic students (23-point gap), and 306 for Asian students (22 points higher than White).
2022 Mathematics Snapshot Report: Nation Grade 8 â National Center for Education Statistics
In 2022, the average NAEP grade 4 reading score was 226 for White students, 198 for Black students (28-point gap), 204 for Hispanic students (22-point gap), and 241 for Asian students (15 points higher than White).
2022 Reading Snapshot Report: Nation Grade 4 â National Center for Education Statistics
In 2022, the average NAEP grade 8 reading score was 267 for White students, 243 for Black students (24-point gap), 250 for Hispanic students (17-point gap), and 283 for Asian students (16 points higher than White).
2022 Reading Snapshot Report: Nation Grade 8 â National Center for Education Statistics
Racial achievement gaps in U.S. education are widened by school segregation, which concentrates Black and Hispanic students in higher-poverty schools with fewer experienced teachers compared to their White peers.
School Segregation Widens Racial Achievement Gaps among Black, White and Hispanic Students â American Sociological Association
The 'Texas Miracle' in Houston ISD under Rod Paige reported a dropout rate of 1.5%, but researchers estimated the true dropout rate was between 25% and 50%.
A new 'miracle' in a Texas school district â The Washington Post