Dive Brief:

• NewSchools Venture Fund CEO Ted Mitchell was confirmed Thursday as the U.S. Education Department's undersecretary of education.
• Mitchell led the education venture philanthropy firm since 2005 and is credited with an expansion that allowed it to invest in 49 ideas last year alone.
• He previously served as president of California's Occidental College, vice chancellor and dean of UCLA's School of Education and Information Studies, and chair of Dartmouth's Department of Education.

Dive Insight:

During his time heading NewSchools, Mitchell also had a stint as president of the California State Board of Education from 2008 to 2010. His experience at all levels of education and in the ed reform fundraising arena should serve him well as he takes on his new role as the third-highest-ranking federal education official. Mitchell's background in teacher-education reform likely played a large role in his selection, as he and U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan have on many occasions expressed skepticism of the preparation teachers colleges provide new educators. Critics like NYU education scholar Diane Ravitch have, however, accused Mitchell of championing the privatization of public schools.