Politicians from both parties heaped unanimous praise on education commissioner nominee Caitlin Davis on Tuesday in a major departure from the divisions that have defined education issues in the state in recent years.
A 15-year veteran of the Department of Education, Davis was lauded during her confirmation hearing for her deep knowledge of the department, her apolitical approach, collegial demeanor, and background in data and financial management.
“We ought to figure out a way to clone her ten times over,” said Republican Rep. Rick Ladd, chair of the House’s Education Finance Committee. “She is really needed. She is a solution-oriented person and she is not political, as we have been these last several years here.”
Davis is set to be confirmed Wednesday by the state’s Executive Council, replacing controversial Commissioner Frank Edelblut, who survived a stormy confirmation process in 2017 and weathered criticism from many public education advocates throughout his tenure.
The sharp contrast between Davis and Edelblut — a conservative former politician who lacked professional experience in education — permeated the hearing.
“The commissioner of a state agency is not a political platform,” Davis said in her opening remarks. “It is a position of public trust and operational responsibility.”
Davis, who currently serves as the department’s director of education analytics and resources, said the largest difference between herself and her current boss was in their professional backgrounds.
“Commissioner Edelblut came into this position with an outside perspective, looking at education, and systems and how education works. He had been a legislator prior but hadn’t spent time working in a state agency,” she said. “That is the number one differentiation factor between myself and Commissioner Edelblut. I have spent 15 years operating a state agency and I know the challenges and the unique circumstances that come with operating a state agency.”
During his eight years at the helm of the department, Edelblut championed non-public school options, promoting the creation and recent expansion of the state’s Education Freedom Account program. He also waded into the book banning debate and other culture-war issues, sparking debate about teacher overreach and leaving some public school educators feeling that they were under a microscope.
Davis described a narrower view of the education commissioner’s purview.
“While education policy may be shaped with divisive political debate, the role of commissioner is to carry out that policy with fairness, professionalism and a commitment to the law,” she said.
Davis also toed the line on the topic of school choice, articulating a commitment to public education but also acknowledging the different options available to students, including education freedom accounts.
“While New Hampshire has expanded its educational options in recent years, it is important to recognize that 90% of our students attend public schools,” she said. “These schools remain the backbone of our education system.”
However, she said, “education is not one-size-fits-all.” The department’s job is to support “a broad set of high-quality educational pathways that meet students where they are,” she said.
Some of the most vocal opposition to Edelblut’s approach to public education has come from the state’s two major teacher unions, the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers. On Tuesday, AFT-NH president Deb Howes said her union supported Davis’s nomination.
“We need a commissioner of education who has an accurate and clear view of what’s going on in their public school classrooms,” Howes said. “…We don’t want to be looking over our shoulder and feel that it’s always a game of ‘gotcha’.”
Superintendents also praised Davis, describing her as communicative and committed to public education.
Davis arrived at the department as an auditor and steadily rose through the ranks, assuming her position as director eight years ago. In that role, she has served as the primary liaison between the department and lawmakers on school funding and career and technical education issues. Recently, she led the implementation of a statewide student information system and the adoption of an online data dashboard, according to a press release from Ayotte’s office. She has also overseen the department’s financial and assessment responsibilities.
Legislators and former employees at the department previously said in interviews that her title masks her level of influence in the department, where she has become seen as one of the top leaders behind Edelblut.
Gov. Kelly Ayotte’s office has thus far not released information about Davis’s educational background or professional background before joining the department, despite requests from the Concord Monitor. Davis did not respond to an interview request following her nomination.
As commissioner, Davis said she will prioritize improving the state’s mathematics program. The state typically performs worse in math than reading in assessments, compared to national averages. She also hopes to work more closely with high schools to establish more robust partnerships in career and technology education.
Drawing another contrast with Edelblut, Davis said that she wants to focus on improving current programs rather than creating new ones.
“Commissioner Edelblut spent a lot of his time inventing programs. He calls himself an innovator, and many of those programs are in place now in the department,” she said. “I would like to spend a lot of time looking at some of those programs — understanding some of the ones that are working, some of the ones that are not working.”
Davis will assume the top education job in the state at a time when public education is increasingly seen as a target of the Trump administration. She called the federal government’s decision to withhold grant money to states — which was reversed last week — “extremely concerning.”
“As soon as we have the grant award notifications in the door, the department will go into its traditional work of preparing the allocations and awarding the funds to the schools,” Davis said.
Jeremy Margolis can be contacted at jmargolis@cmonitor.com.
