Cade Brumley

Cade Brumley is an American educator and administrator who has served as the Louisiana Superintendent of Education since June 8, 2020.^[1] A native of Converse in Sabine Parish, he previously served as superintendent of DeSoto Parish Schools and of Jefferson Parish Public Schools, the largest school district in Louisiana.^[2][3]

Following his appointment, Louisiana's overall ranking on National Assessment of Educational Progress rose from near the bottom of U.S. states in 2019 to 32nd in 2024, and a joint Harvard–Stanford Education Recovery Scorecard ranked the state first in the nation for reading recovery and second for math following the COVID-19 pandemic.^[4][5]

Brumley was raised in Converse, a small community in Sabine Parish in northwest Louisiana.^[2] He attended Converse High School.^[6][7]

He earned a bachelor's degree from Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, Louisiana, a master's degree in school administration from Louisiana State University Shreveport, and a doctorate in educational leadership or school leadership from Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas.^[8][6] He later completed the Harvard Superintendents Academy, a professional development program for school system leaders.^[6]

Brumley began his career as a teacher and coach in Caddo Parish Schools in northwest Louisiana.^[8] He later returned to Converse High School in Sabine Parish, where he served as a teacher, coach, assistant principal and eventually principal.^[6] He has also taught as an adjunct instructor in higher education, offering courses in education and leadership at multiple universities.^[9]

In 2012 Brumley was appointed superintendent of the DeSoto Parish School System in northwest Louisiana.^[10][11] He led the district for roughly six years, a period during which DeSoto's district performance score moved from near the bottom of Louisiana's 70-plus districts into the top tier and the district received an overall “A” rating from the state accountability system.^[10][12]

During his tenure, DeSoto Parish recorded rising graduation rates, reductions in dropout and suspension rates, and increased participation and performance in Advanced Placement courses, according to district and state summaries cited at the time of his move to Jefferson Parish and later to the state superintendency.^[12]

In 2018 the Jefferson Parish School Board selected Brumley as superintendent of Jefferson Parish Schools, Louisiana's largest school district with about 50,000 students in the New Orleans suburbs.^[11][3] He was sworn in as superintendent in July 2018.^[13]

In Jefferson Parish, Brumley oversaw efforts to standardize curriculum across schools, expand Spanish-language offerings, reorganize some schools into K–8 models, and restructure the central office.^[8] He worked with local business and labor groups to support a ten-year property tax dedicated to raising pay for teachers and other district employees, which produced one of the larger teacher salary increases in the New Orleans area at the time.^[8]

On May 20, 2020, the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) voted 8–3 to appoint Brumley as state superintendent of education, succeeding acting superintendent Beth Scioneaux after the resignation of John White.^[14][15] The Louisiana Senate unanimously confirmed his appointment on June 1, 2020, and he assumed office on June 8, 2020.^[1][16]

On January 17, 2024, BESE unanimously voted to reappoint Brumley as superintendent, citing improvements in state and national academic indicators during his first term.^[17][18]

In 2024 the Louisiana Legislature enacted House Bill 71, a law requiring public K–12 and postsecondary classrooms in the state to display a poster-sized font-specific copy of the Protestant version of the Ten Commandments.^[19] Brumley had no part in the passage of the law, but in his official capacity as state superintendent he was chosen as the named defendant in the federal lawsuit Roake v. Brumley filed by parents and civil-liberties organizations challenging the law.^{[20][19][21][22][23]}

In February 2025, following guidance from the U.S. Department of Education under President Donald Trump’s administration concerning the use of race-conscious practices in education, Brumley sent a letter to Louisiana K–12 system leaders urging compliance with the federal directive and with a state executive order limiting diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in public schools.^[24] In the letter he wrote that discrimination on the basis of race, color or national origin is “illegal and morally reprehensible” and advised districts to review programs and awards for compliance with the new federal and state guidance.^[24]

Brumley is married to Toni Vail, a fellow Northwestern State University graduate. They have two sons.^[8]

• Louisiana Department of Education
• Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education