Carey Wright

74, State Superintendent of Schools

“I am a classroom teacher at heart,” said Carey Wright, who started her career as an elementary school teacher in Prince George’s County, where she grew up. Her Maryland roots — she received three degrees from the University of Maryland — brought her out of retirement to steer the state’s 1,400 public schools through their largest education reform in decades.

She’s made big changes fast based on her past success boosting the second-to-last national ranking of Mississippi’s public schools to 21st in the country. Wright created a literacy policy making all Maryland districts use the science of reading — one of the most effective ways to teach children from all backgrounds to read. And she’s zeroing in on how to improve reading and writing skills for children in kindergarten through third grade.

Wright has stepped into the role as Maryland’s top education leader during a crucial moment. The Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, a multibillion education reform plan, seeks to transform the way students learn over the next decade. But the plan is very expensive and rumblings of criticism are growing loud. Wright is in lockstep with the Maryland State Board of Education and the state Accountability and Implementation Board to see through the plan’s many reforms and lobby against any funding cuts.

— Lilly Price