Roderick “Rod” Paige, former U.S. Secretary of Education, had a career that traced a rare arc from the classroom to the center of national education policy, with Houston serving as both his proving ground and blueprint. Paige, who died on December 9 at the age of 92 this year, leaves behind a legacy that has permanently altered how American public education defines responsibility.
As superintendent of Houston ISD, Paige championed data-driven accountability at a time when disaggregated student performance metrics were not yet standard practice. Houstonians credit those reforms, collectively known as the “Houston Miracle,” which include higher teacher pay, expanded charter schools, facility upgrades, and tying teacher professional development to performance benchmarks.
Paige’s initiatives followed him to Washington, where, as U.S. Secretary of Education under President George W. Bush, he became the public face of the “No Child Left Behind policy.” Framed by Paige as a civil rights measure, the law codified transparency and accountability into federal policy while igniting enduring questions about federal overreach and the limits of test-based reform.
