How are members of the state board of education selected?
November 2017
Data are collected using publicly available state constitutional language and state statutes. Updated as of Nov. 1, 2017.
| How are members of the state board of education selected? | |
| Alabama | Voting state board members are elected from eight districts provided by law. |
| Alaska | The state board is appointed by the governor and is subject to confirmation by a majority of the legislature in a joint session. |
| Arizona | Members of the state board of education are appointed by the governor with the consent of the senate. |
| Arkansas | The state board is appointed by the governor and is subject to confirmation by the senate. |
| California | The state board of education is appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of two-thirds of the senate. |
| Colorado | The state board of education is elected through popular vote. |
| Connecticut | The governor appoints the state board of education with the advice and consent of the general assembly. |
| Delaware | The governor appoints the state board of education and the members are confirmed by the senate. |
| District of Columbia | All nine members of the state board of education are elected, one from each of the eight school election wards as well as one member elected at-large. |
| Florida | The governor appoints all members of the state board, subject to confirmation by the senate. |
| Georgia | The governor appoints all members of the state board with the advice and consent of the senate. |
| Hawaii | The governor appoints all members of the state board with the advice and consent of the senate. |
| Idaho | The governor appoints all members, except for the superintendent of public instruction, of the board of education, subject to confirmation by the senate. |
| Illinois | The state board of education is appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate. |
| Indiana | The governor appoints eight members of the board. One is chosen by the speaker of the house. One is chosen by the president pro tempore of the senate. The superintendent is an ex officio member. |
| Iowa | The voting members are appointed by the governor subject to senate confirmation. The nonvoting student member is appointed by the governor from a list of names submitted by the state board of education. |
| Kansas | All members of the state board of education are elected by voters in his or her district. |
| Kentucky | Eleven members of the state board of education are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the senate and the house of representatives. |
| Louisiana | Eight members are elected from individual districts. Three are appointed by the governor from the state at large with consent from the senate. |
| Maine | All members of the state board of education are appointed by the governor and are subject to review by the joint standing committee of the legislature having jurisdiction over education matters and to confirmation by the senate. The state board of education selects three student finalists from a competitive application process for the governor's consideration and appointment. |
| Maryland | All members of the state board of education are appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate. |
| Massachusetts | All members of the state board are appointed by the governor. |
| Michigan | Members of the state board of education are elected. |
| Minnesota | N/A |
| Mississippi | Five members of the state board of education are appointed by the governor, two at-large members are appointed by the lieutenant governor, and two at-large members are selected by the speaker of the house of representatives. All appointments are made with the advice and consent of the senate. |
| Missouri | The governor appoints the members of the state board of education with the advice and consent of the governor. |
| Montana | Seven members of the state board of education are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the senate. |
| Nebraska | Members of the state board of education are elected. |
| Nevada | Four voting members are elected. Three voting members are appointed by the governor. Additionally, four nonvoting members are appointed by the governor. |
| New Hampshire | The governor and executive council shall appoint the members of the board. |
| New Jersey | Members of the state board of education are appointed by the governor with the consent of the senate. |
| New Mexico | Members are elected from ten individual districts. |
| New York | The legislature elects the members of the state board of regents. |
| North Carolina | Eleven members of the state board of education are appointed by the governor and confirmed in a joint session in the general assembly. |
| North Dakota | The governor shall appoint new board members from a list of names submitted by a committee consisting of the president of North Dakota united, the president of the North Dakota council of education leaders, and the president of the North Dakota school boards association. |
| Ohio | Eleven members of the state board of education are elected. Eight members of the board are appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate. |
| Oklahoma | The superintendent of public instruction is an ex officio member of the board. The remaining members of the state board of education are appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate. |
| Oregon | The state treasurer and secretary of state, or their designees, are ex officio members of the state board. The five members representing the state's congressional districts and two at large members are appointed by the governor, subject to confirmation by the senate. |
| Pennsylvania | The chairmen and minority chairmen of the house of representatives and senate education committees shall be ex officio members. The governor appoints the remaining 17 voting members, who are confirmed by a majority in the senate. The secretary of education serves on the state board as a nonvoting member. |
| Rhode Island | The governor appoints the members of both councils and the chairperson with the advice and consent of the senate. |
| South Carolina | The members from each of the judicial circuits are elected by the legislative delegations representing each circuit. The governor appoints one member. |
| South Dakota | The members of the state board of education are appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate. |
| Tennessee | The governor appoints the state board of education, subject to confirmation by the senate and the house of representatives. |
| Texas | Members of the state board of education are elected. |
| Utah | Members of the state board of education are elected from 15 districts established by the legislature. |
| Vermont | Members of the state board are appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate. |
| Virginia | Members of the state board of education are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the general assembly. |
| Washington | Seven members represent the educational system, five of which are elected by school district directors. One member is elected at large by the members of the boards of directors of all private schools. The superintendent is also on the board. Seven are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the senate. Two are students selected in a manner determined by the state board of education. |
| West Virginia | Three members - the state superintendent of schools, the chancellor of higher education policy commission, and the chancellor of the West Virginia council for community and technical college education - are ex officio members. The remaining nine are appointed by the governor with the advice of consent of the senate. Of the appointed members, at least two, but not more than three are appointed from each congressional district. No more than five of the appointive members may belong to the same political party. |
| Wisconsin | N/A |
| Wyoming | Eleven members of the state board of education is appointed by the governor with the approval of the senate. The superintendent of public instruction, the executive director of the Wyoming community college commission and the president of the University of Wyoming, or their designees, shall be ex-officio members and shall not have the right to vote. |
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