After last night’s meeting, the Bryant School Board is considering a candidate for Bryant Schools Superintendent that currently holds a State post. Tom Kimbrell was appointed as Arkansas Commissioner of Education by Governor Mike Beebe in September 2009. According to the “Right to Know” pages for State Salaries, Kimbrell was making $228,887.98 as of August 2013.
According to the Arkansas Department of Education website, he has “expertise in school finance, education policy, assessment, accountability and curriculum and instruction.”
It’s the next line that could end up being controversial, though: “He has been a key voice in the state’s implementation of the Common Core State Standards.”
I’ll admit that I’m not educated enough about the program to know whether I like it or not, but what I do know is that there are two very definite sides for and against Common Core.
Kimbrell formerly served as Superintendent for North Little Rock and Paragould and as Executive Director of the Arkansas Association of Educational Administrators (AEAA). He also served as Assistant Principal at the Corning Schools and taught at Pocahontas Schools. He went to the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville and Arkansas State University in Jonesboro, earning a Bachelor, a Master and a Doctorate in Education. He currently lives in Cabot with his family.