Official DC Entities
DC Ed Org Chart.pngThe above image comes from this slideshow from the Office of the Student Advocate, which includes additional useful context on how the below organizations inter-relate.
The DME is responsible for developing and implementing the Mayor’s vision for academic excellence, promoting strategic coordination across government agencies, DC Public Schools and public charter schools, and community partners, and ensuring a high-quality education from early childhood, to K-12, through post- secondary and the workforce.
Deputy Mayor for Education: Paul Kihn - paul.kihn@dc.gov
OSSE is the state education agency for the District of Columbia. OSSE sets statewide policies, provides resources and support, and exercises accountability for all public education in DC. Provides information, policy guidance, and resources on education matters to local education agencies (LEAs) and parents.
State Superintendent of Education: Dr. Christina Grant - OSSE.Superintendent@dc.gov
The State Board of Education is responsible for advising the State Superintendent of Education on educational matters, including: state standards; state policies, including those governing special, academic, vocational, charter and other schools; state objectives; and state regulations proposed by the Mayor or the State Superintendent of Education.
Board Members and Committee Assignments
DCPS is the Local Education Agency that oversees all non-charter public schools in DC. It is a cabinet-level agency within the executive branch of the District of Columbia government—specifically, under Mayoral control.
Chancellor of DC Public Schools: Dr. Lewis D. Ferebee - chancellor@k12.dc.gov
Core Leadership Team (including Instructional Superintendents who manage clusters of individual schools)
The DCPS Engagement and Partnerships Office’s Community Action Team is comprised of four individuals who serve communities based on DCPS Clusters. Each CAT member is responsible for building and sustaining strategic relationships with key community stakeholders, including those who have been historically underrepresented in our decision-making process. The CAT is also responsible for assisting DCPS stakeholders in accessing information and resources offered by DCPS and communicating external needs and trends back to DCPS.
Phone: (202) 719-6613
Email: LSAT.Help@k12.dc.gov
Visit the CAT webpage to find contact information for your school's specific CAT representative
The Office of the Student Advocate (OSA) is an independent office, housed in the District of Columbia State Board of Education (SBOE), that provides guidance and resource support to assist families in navigating the complex public education system in the District of Columbia. OSA focuses on strengthening student, family and community voice in public education and supporting the needs of families through outreach, a public education hotline, and assistance with enrollment and interactions with school personnel, as well as by tracking trends and recommending policy changes, staff trainings, and other strategies to improve the efficient and equitable delivery of public education services.
Phone: (202) 741-4692
Email: student.advocate@dc.gov
The DC Office of the Ombudsman for Public Education is a confidential and informal resource that helps resolve issues between DC families and traditional public and public charter schools. They work to resolve issues in all areas that affect student learning, including bullying and student safety, discipline, special education, attendance, enrollment, academic progress, and communication barriers.
Phone: (202) 741-0886
Email: educationombudsman@dc.gov
DC PCSB is an independent government agency of the District of Columbia. As the sole public charter school authorizer in the District, DC PCSB provides oversight and support to the District’s public charter schools, which are managed by independently run nonprofit organizations called local education agencies.
Executive Director of the DC Public Charter School Board: Dr. Michelle J. Walker-Davis - dcpublic@dcpcsb.org
As the central and chief policy-making body for the District of Columbia, the Council’s role is to make laws and oversee multiple agencies, commissions, boards and other instruments of District government. The Council also plays a critical role in maintaining a balanced budget and the fiscal health of the District of Columbia government. The Council’s Education Committee sits within the Committee of the Whole, meaning all 13 Councilmembers are responsible for oversight of the DME, OSSE, SBOE, DCPS, DC PCSB, and many other educational agencies.
An ANC is a non-partisan, neighborhood body made up of locally elected representatives called Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners. The ANCs' main job is to be their neighborhood's official voice in advising the District government (and Federal agencies) on things that affect their neighborhoods. Although they are not required to follow the ANCs' advice, District agencies are required to give the ANCs' recommendations "great weight." Moreover, District law says that agencies cannot take any action that will significantly affect a neighborhood unless they give the affected ANCs 30 days advance notice. This includes zoning, streets, recreation, education, social services, sanitation, planning, safety, budget, and health services. The ANCs may also initiate recommendations for improving city services, conduct neighborhood improvement programs, and monitor resident complaints.
DGS is a DC government agency responsible for construction, building management and maintenance, portfolio management, sustainability and security at District-owned properties, including DC public schools.
Director: Keith A. Anderson - Keith.Anderson@dc.gov
The mission of the Washington Teachers’ Union is to raise the standards of the teaching profession by ensuring and promoting conditions vital to effective services for all students; and to define and strengthen services of the schools and to afford employees with a full opportunity to participate in the democratic decision-making process within schools for the common good.
My School DC is the common application and common lottery for the District’s public school options (all public schools and participating public charter schools) and hosts a School Finder to provide information about the schools.