FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. — Virginia's superintendent of public instruction announced her resignation in a letter to Gov. Glenn Youngkin Wednesday.
Jillian Balow was appointed as the commonwealth's 26th superintendent of public instruction on Jan. 15, 2022. She previously worked as Wyoming’s state superintendent before coming to Virginia.
In the letter announcing her resignation, Balow thanked Youngkin for the opportunity to serve students, schools and families. She said she will continue to support Youngkin's agenda for raising standards and promoting excellence.
“I am particularly proud of the fact that we advanced your agenda for education over the past two successful General Assembly sessions,” Balow said. “Because of our work, many more students will have access to career and technical education courses that better prepare them for the next steps in their lives.”
A month into the job, Balow made headlines for working with the governor to eliminate several education programs he claimed promoted "inherently divisive concepts," including critical race theory.
Superintendents from across the commonwealth criticized Balow's report, with Howard Kiser, the executive director of the Virginia Association of School Superintendents saying "gross assumptions have been made, without evidentiary support."
In February, a draft proposal regarding the history and social sciences standards of learning in Commonwealth classrooms received pushback from Virginians who felt the Board of Education was whitewashing history.
One document lacked any mention of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. While some civil rights groups took issue with Native American groups being called the nation’s “first immigrants” in a proposal.
Balow responded to the backlash, saying "these draft standards will build student understanding of the attributes, ideals and actions that have made America the world’s exemplar of freedom and opportunity. At the same time, the standards are unflinching in their presentation of those times when Virginia and the nation failed to live up to our founding ideals.”
Balow's resignation will be effective as of March 9.