Ohio State Board of Education picks superintendent

Steve Dackin, an ex-member of the Ohio State Board of Education, was picked to be the next superintendent of public instruction for Ohio, the top job at the Ohio Department of Education.

Dackin previously led the search for the next superintendent of public instruction before resigning and applying for the job three days later. He was also previously the vice president of the Ohio State Board of Education.

Dackin got 14 votes out of the 19 people on the Ohio State Board of Education.

Dackin succeeds former State Superintendent Paolo DeMaria, who retired last September. Stephanie Siddens, the interim state superintendent, did not apply for the job.

Dackin was most recently the superintendent of school and community partnerships at Columbus State Community College. Before that, he was superintendent of Reynoldsburg Schools near Columbus from 2007 until 2014.

Dackin touted his experience as a superintendent at Reynoldsburg in a written interview submitted to the board. He noted that the district allowed open enrollment while he was there.

Dackin’s appointment was applauded by many Ohio education groups.

“We are encouraged to see Steve Dackin selected as Ohio’s next state superintendent of education,” Melissa Cropper, president of the union Ohio Federation of

Teachers president, said. “Thanks to his decades of experience as a teacher, principal, superintendent, and Ohio State Board of Education member, we’re confident that Steve Dackin understands the challenges and opportunities inside our schools and will actively work to solve problems instead of inflame them with divisive rhetoric.”