Rod Paige

Roderick Raynor Paige Sr. (June 17, 1933 – December 9, 2025) was an American academic and politician who served as the 7th United States secretary of education from 2001 to 2005 during the George W. Bush administration. He was the first African American to serve as the secretary of education. His tenure as education secretary was noted for his involvement in the creation and passage of the No Child Left Behind Act in 2002.

Paige, who grew up in Mississippi, served as the head football coach for the Jackson State Tigers from 1964 to 1968 and Texas Southern Tigers from 1971 to 1975. He also served as a college dean for Texas Southern University and was the Superintendent of the Houston Independent School District from 1994 until 2001. After leaving the Education Department in 2005, Paige served as interim president of Jackson State University from November 2016 to June 2017.