Wayne D. Lewis, Jr.
On April 17, 2018, The Kentucky Board of Education named Dr. Wayne D. Lewis, Jr., the interim commissioner of education. Lewis is a University of Kentucky professor and most recently served as the executive director of educational programs with the Kentucky Cabinet for Education and Workforce Development. He has taken a leave of absence from UK and resigned his position with the Cabinet to serve as interim commissioner.
Lewis has more than 15 years of experience in public education, serving professionally in public school districts, higher education institutions and state government. He has served as an advisor to the Kentucky Board of Education, the Education & Workforce Secretary’s Designee on Kentucky’s Early Childhood Advisory Council (ECAC) and chair of Kentucky’s Charter Schools Advisory Council. His research, writing and teaching encompass the areas of education policy and politics, human capital and human resources management in education organizations.
“I am incredibly humbled and excited to serve the Commonwealth in this position, and pledge to work every day on behalf of all the students and families across Kentucky, Lewis said. “We need to refocus the conversation on kids and on improving education for them. Our children need to be our number one priority.”
Dr. Lewis completed an undergraduate degree in Criminal Justice at Loyola University New Orleans. He earned a master’s degree in Urban Studies with a concentration in Public Administration at The University of Akron, and a Ph.D. in Educational Research and Policy Analysis with a cognate in Public Administration at North Carolina State University. He serves on the ministerial team at Wesley United Methodist Church in Lexington and is a member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.
Dr. Lewis is a native of New Orleans, LA, and has called Kentucky his home since 2009. He is married to an educator and has a young daughter.