Iowa Department of Education director resigns after three months

DES MOINES — The director of Iowa's Department of Education has resigned after a three-month stint on the job and will be replaced by a Virginia education official who vows to build on new educational policies championed by Gov. Kim Reynolds, the governor’s office announced Thursday.

Chad Aldis, who was hired in March to replace outgoing Education Department Director Ann Lebo, has resigned for unspecified family reasons. Reynolds appointed McKenzie Snow, the deputy secretary of education for Virginia, to replace him.

  Buy Photo

“While a leadership change at this time was unexpected, I respect why it’s necessary. I want to thank Director Aldis for his service, and I wish him and his family the very best,” Reynolds said in a statement.

Aldis offered no further details in a brief resignation letter obtained by The Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau, dated May 26. He called his appointment as head of the department the "honor of a lifetime."

"It is therefore with regret that, for family reasons, I submit this letter of resignation effective June 30," he wrote. "When I am no longer in this role, I’ll be cheering your successes from afar as you continue to put the needs of students first and work to lift achievement for all Iowa children."

Snow will start Monday and Aldis will remain through the end of the month to help with the transition, the governor's office said. The department provides oversight to the state education system that includes public elementary and secondary schools, state accredited non-public schools, area education agencies, community colleges and teacher preparation programs. The department employs about 220 people.

Reynolds praised Snow’s leadership in Virginia and New Hampshire, as well as her experience with the U.S. Department of Education and in the White House.

“She has worked to expand career and technical education opportunities that empower students to earn a credential or credit, implement the Science of Reading to drive literacy, and promote transparency and student-centered funding,” Reynolds said in the statement.

Snow previously worked in former President Donald Trump’s administration, and as a K-12 policy director under his secretary of education, Betsy DeVos.

A group funded by DeVos’ family, The American Federation for Children, spent nearly $257,000 in Iowa’s 2022 primary elections to help elect Republican candidates for the Iowa Legislature who supported Reynolds’ proposal for state-funded private school tuition assistance.

In a statement, Snow commended Reynolds' education policies.

“All children — regardless of their background or zip code — deserve a great education that inspires and prepares them for the future," she said. "Together, we will continue to build upon Iowa’s commitment to educational excellence for all children.”

Snow will receive a salary of $200,000 for the new role, Reynolds' spokesperson Kollin Crompton said. Snow's salary at the Virginia Department of Education was $88,000 in 2022, according to state data.

Progress Iowa, a liberal advocacy organization, slammed Reynolds in a statement for hiring Snow, pointing to her past work in Trump's U.S. Department of Education.

"Parents and students deserve a heck of a lot better at the Department of Education than someone who learned how to privatize and pillage our public schools working under former MAGA President Donald Trump and private school executive Betsy DeVos," Progress Iowa Executive Director Matt Sinovic said in a statement.

Snow also has worked as a division director for the New Hampshire Department of Education, and a policy director for the Foundation for Excellence in Education, an education reform think tank founded by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. The foundation has advocated for expanding charter schools and taxpayer assistance for private schools.

“The nation is watching what we’re doing in Virginia and McKenzie Snow knows first-hand what it takes to build a best-in-class education partnership with parents, families and educators," Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said in a statement provided by Reynolds' office. "The incredible record Gov. Reynolds has amassed on education for all Iowans will be strengthened by McKenzie’s appointment and I am proud of what she will bring to the Reynolds Administration.”

Snow will take over the department as it charts implementation of the private school tuition assistance program, which lawmakers passed and Reynolds signed in January. The program, Reynolds’ key legislative priority this year, was expected to cost $107 million in the first year, but applications from parents have already exceeded expectations.

Snow is subject to a two-thirds confirmation in the Iowa Senate during the next legislative session. Aldis was confirmed largely along party lines, with support of Republicans and three Democrats, earlier this year. He faced opposition by Democrats because he had never worked as an educator or school administrator.

Aldis, a Comanche native who had attended the University of Northern Iowa, had moved to Iowa before resigning, Crompton said. He had been vice president for Ohio policy at the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, a school choice and charter school think tank.

His salary was $190,000, and he was paid $57,275 during his tenure, with a vacation payout of $1,246. He will not receive additional payments after June 30.