Jillian Balow Superintendent of Public Instruction at the Virginia Department of Education
Jillian Balow taught for ten years and has worked to support children and families her entire career. In addition to teaching, Jillian has consulted in the private sector, served as an administrator at both the Wyoming Department of Family Services, and was a policy advisor to Wyoming Governor Matt Mead.
Superintendent Balow stepped down after serving seven years as Wyoming’s elected State Superintendent of Public Instruction to work in Governor Youngkin’s administration.
Jillian has worked with tribal partners to enact “Indian Education for All” so that all Wyoming students learn about the history and contributions of the Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone Tribes. Jillian developed a support system for Wyoming’s lowest performing schools and in three years, the number of schools requiring assistance has decreased by 5%. She incorporated career and military readiness into Wyoming’s statewide accountability model for the first time. She worked with business, industry, policymakers, and educators to enact and implement computer science education in every K-12 classroom.