Kirsten Baesler will assume the role of Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education at the U.S. Department of Education on November 24, 2025, following her nomination in February and Senate confirmation on October 7, 2025.

A lifelong educator and reform leader, Baesler has served as North Dakota’s State Superintendent of Public Instruction since 2013, leading a department of more than 80 professionals who oversee education for students in 223 public and nonpublic school districts statewide. Re-elected to her fourth term in 2024, she has built a reputation for collaboration, innovation, and measurable results.

Under her leadership, North Dakota became the first state in the nation to require cybersecurity and computer science education in every grade, strengthened personalized learning options for families, and significantly improved graduation rates and academic success for Native American students. She launched statewide initiatives to ensure all students graduate “Choice Ready”—equipped with the knowledge, skills, and character to thrive in college, career, or the military—and spearheaded new apprenticeship pathways to address teacher recruitment and retention.

Baesler also serves on more than a dozen state boards, including the Education Standards and Practices Board, the Children’s Cabinet, the Board for Career and Technical Education, and the Board of University and School Lands, which manages a $7.76 billion trust for public schools. She oversees the North Dakota School for the Deaf/Resource Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, North Dakota Vision Services/School for the Blind, the Center for Distance Education, and the State Library.

A passionate advocate for civic education and character development, Baesler champions efforts to prepare young Americans with respect, courage, compassion, and integrity.

Before her election as superintendent, she spent 24 years in the Bismarck Public School system as a teacher, library media specialist, and administrator, and served nine years on the Mandan School Board, seven as its president.

Baesler holds degrees from Bismarck State College, Minot State University, and Valley City State University, and completed educational leadership studies at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education. She has received Valley City’s Distinguished Alumni Award and Bismarck State’s Rising Star Award.

Nationally, she is a past president of the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) and has been recognized as a Hunt-Kean Leadership Fellow and a Governing Institute Woman in Government Leadership Fellow.

A native of Flasher, North Dakota, Baesler lives in Mandan. She has three adult sons, one daughter-in-law, and three granddaughters—all proud graduates of North Dakota public schools and universities.