Kathy Hoffman started her career as a teacher and was elected to serve as Arizona’s Superintendent of Public Instruction in 2018. Her advocacy for students was fostered while working in special education serving students with disabilities. In her role as a speech language pathologist, she worked as a part of a multidisciplinary team in the Vail School District and Peoria Unified School District. Kathy was motivated to run for office to elevate the voices of educators to inform statewide policies and ensure that all students could achieve their full potential.
As a state leader and champion for public education, Kathy has worked tirelessly to improve students’ access to mental health supports and provide resources for teachers across the state. Kathy brought steady leadership to the Arizona Department of Education during the pandemic by partnering with public health experts, collaboratively addressing the technology needs for virtual instruction, and allocating over $4 billion of federal funds to accelerate student learning.
Kathy is thrilled to have started in a new position at Arizona State University’s Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College as the Executive Director for Innovation and Special Education Initiatives. She firmly believes that Arizona’s future starts in our schools and looks forward to collaboratively developing new strategies for moving public education forward.