Inez Moore Tenenbaum, South Carolina’s fifteenth State Superintendent of Education, was elected in 1998 and completed her second four-year term in 2007. She chose not to seek reelection.

During Mrs. Tenenbaum’s tenure, student achievement in South Carolina improved at the fastest rate in the nation, with scores increasing—often dramatically—on every state, national, and international test administered. For the first time in the state’s history, students scored at or above the national average on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), and fourth- and eighth-graders consistently led the nation in improvement in math and science. South Carolina’s achievement prompted Standard and Poor’s to identify the Palmetto State as an “outperformer” on the NAEP for consistently performing above statistical expectations. On the SAT, South Carolina had the top five-year gain in the nation for four consecutive years.

South Carolina’s progress in improving education during Mrs. Tenenbaum’s two terms won national recognition and respect. Under her leadership, South Carolina became the first state in the nation to earn federal approval to implement the federal accountability law known as No Child Left Behind. Eight independent studies cited South Carolina’s academic standards as among the most rigorous in the nation. At the end of Mrs. Tenenbaum’s tenure, the prestigious journal Education Week ranked South Carolina number one in the country for the quality of its academic standards, assessments, and accountability systems.

South Carolina’s college-bound seniors earned $2.4 billion in college scholarships during Mrs. Tenebaum’s two terms, and 5,000 teachers earned National Board certification, ranking South Carolina third in the nation for the number of teachers holding that credential.

Mrs. Tenenbaum worked with the South Carolina General Assembly to increase funding for education and bring about needed reform. Her most prominent reform initiatives include the following:

• implementing the state’s Education Accountability Act by revising the state’s academic standards, developing assessments, and providing technical assistance to the state’s low-performing schools;
• creating the South Carolina Reading Initiative to train teachers in the complexities of teaching students to read;
• leading the successful effort to provide more than $750 million for school renovation and construction without raising taxes;
• establishing the Office Early Childhood Education within the State Department of Education and increasing enrollment in the state’s education programs for four-year-olds;
• creating the first-ever School Leadership Executive Institute in partnership with the Center for Creative Leadership to train principals and superintendents;
• redesigning the state’s high schools by working to pass the Education and Economic Development Act and creating a secondary virtual high school;
• improving teacher quality by implementing the Teacher Advancement Program, which created a career ladder for teachers and provided financial bonuses for their attainment of student-achievement goals; and making schools safer by providing more guidance counselors and school resource officers.

Mrs. Tenenbaum received her Bachelor of Science and Master of Education degrees from the University of Georgia and her law degree from the University of South Carolina. In addition to having practiced health, environmental, and public interest law with the firm of Sinkler and Boyd, she has worked as an elementary school teacher and served as the director of research for the Medical, Military, Public, and Municipal Affairs Committee of the South Carolina House of Representatives. She is the recipient of several honorary degrees and has been recognized by numerous state and community organizations for her civic work on behalf of children and families