Below are some of the most frequently asked questions we receive. If you cannot find the answer that you are looking for you can reach the State Board of Education office by sending an email to the State Board of Education or calling (302) 735-4010.

The State Board of Education is comprised of 9 individuals. There are 7 voting members (appointed by the Governor, confirmed by the Senate). There are 2 non-voting members, including a former Delaware State Teacher of the Year who is employed as a Delaware public school educator and an 11th or 12th grade student at a public school in the state. Members reside in each of Delaware’s counties and the city of Wilmington, belong to different political parties, and bring a diverse set of skills and perspectives to the work. At least two members have previously served on a local board of education.

The statutory roles and responsibilities of the State Board can be found at Delaware Code Online. Some of the Board’s primary responsibilities include:

  • Serving as the CTE Eligible Agency for the State Perkins Plan;
  • Approving charter school authorizations — new, major modifications, renewals, and formal review;
  • Approving regulations governing 100+ topics, including approval of content standards, assessments, graduation requirements, educator evaluation, DIAA regulations, licensure and certification, and many others;
  • Providing the breadth and viewpoint of a citizen’s board;
  • Providing the Secretary of Education with advice in the development of policy, new initiatives, students assessments, budget requests, among others;
  • Resolving disputes and controversies of the state education system, including school district boundaries, rules/regulations of local boards and suspensions/expulsions for disciplinary reasons.

The State Board holds regular monthly meetings typically on the third Thursday of each month. The Board may hold additional meetings to address Board business, as necessary. Meetings usually begin at 5pm. The Board rotates locations of regular meetings among Delaware’s three counties.

Directions on how the public may attend meetings electronically have been posted on the Public Meeting Calendar.

Information about all State Board of Education meetings is posted on the State of Delaware’s Public Meeting Calendar (PMC). The agenda and relevant materials are posted on the Board’s eBoard website.

Meeting Minutes are posted after the meeting to the PMC. Audio recordings are also posted after each meeting and can be found on the SBE Monthly Meetings webpage.

Yes. Regular monthly meetings and subcommittees of the State Board of Education are open to the public.

Members of the public are welcome to speak before the State Board of Education during the scheduled public comment period at every regular board meeting. Public comment sign-up sheets are located at the entrance of the Board meeting room on the day of the meeting. While meetings are held virtually, persons wishing to address the Board can email their name, the name of their group (if speaking on behalf of a group), and the topic of their comment to Delaware.SBE@sbe.k12.de.us by 12:00pm on the day of the meeting. Opportunity to sign up will also be provided during the meeting.

To provide all members of the public with an equal opportunity to speak to the board, each organization is limited to three minutes and individuals are limited to two minutes, unless otherwise noted.

No. The State Board of Education has specific responsibilities as outlined in state code. A list of relevant code references can be found in our procedures manual. A list of Board-approved regulations is also available.

The State Board of Education plays a role in the decennial reapportionment of school board nominating districts.