Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek appointed Charlene Williams, Evergreen Public Schools’ deputy superintendent, to serve as the next director of the Oregon Department of Education and deputy superintendent of Public Instruction.
Williams, who will be the first Black woman to lead the state agency in Oregon’s history, began her time in Evergreen in August 2022.
In addition to Evergreen, she has 30 years of experience working in administrative roles in the Camas School District, Portland Public Schools, Portland Community College and more.
In Camas, Williams helped implement the district’s first ever equity policy and aided in the formation of student affinity groups and community forums to better receive feedback from stakeholders.
Kotek pointed to Williams’ experience in equity work as a key reason for her selection.
“Dr. Williams is an exceptional leader and educator, and I believe will be a transformative, inclusive education director for all of Oregon,” Kotek said in a release Tuesday. “My vision is to make sure every child is successful and has a safe place to receive a high-quality public education. We have work to do to build toward that vision. I’m thrilled to work with someone who is highly skilled in developing and implementing programs designed at closing education gaps. Dr. Williams is strategic, thoughtful, hard-working, and exactly the leader our state education system needs at this moment.”
In her short time in Evergreen, district leaders have repeatedly identified Williams as key in helping the district navigate pandemic-related struggles and implement its own new “equity lens.”
“Dr. Williams is an amazing educator and human being. She will absolutely be missed here at EPS, but I am so thrilled for her that she has been chosen by Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek to lead Oregon’s Department of Education,” said John Boyd, Evergreen’s superintendent. “We have loved having Dr. Williams as part of our EPS team, and we know that she will continue to be a strong advocate for students in this new role.”
Williams will officially take over as the Oregon Department of Education’s interim director on July 10. The Oregon Senate will take up her confirmation as permanent director in September.
Evergreen plans to hire a new deputy superintendent to replace Williams in the coming months, but no further details were available as of Tuesday. The position paid a salary of $242,589 in the 2022-2023 school year.
