Steve Canavero

Overview

Steve Canavero has 28 years of experience in education with roles spanning from classroom teacher to chief state school officer. Canavero currently leads the Region 13 Comprehensive Center (R13CC) focused on building the capacity of state education agency (SEA) leaders and their partners in Oklahoma and New Mexico and the Bureau of Indian Education to design and develop evidence-based initiatives to improve student outcomes and address operational excellence.

The R13CC has completed meaningful projects, exceeding our targets for client satisfaction ratings for quality of services provided and outcomes met (both averaging over 95%) over the past 3 years.

Prior to directing the R13CC, Canavero contributed to a wide body of work at WestEd. His experience in and knowledge of SEA leadership and operations was a key addition to the federal TA Center to Improve Social and Emotional Learning and School Safety, where he supported state teams to develop strategic approaches to implement evidence-based practices and communication plans to reach target audiences outside of education. Additionally, he organized and led an initiative to expand WestEd’s support of schools of choice, including magnet schools, open choice districts, and charter schools.

Canavero served as the State Superintendent of Public Instruction for Nevada, where he led the state’s education system, which served more than 485,000 students enrolled in districts that range from the nation’s fifth largest to a rural district serving fewer than 100 students. During his tenure, Canavero led a complete restructuring of the department and launched a comprehensive strategic plan and performance management system to ensure the department’s infrastructure was aligned and accountable for outcomes. Canavero previously served as the Deputy Superintendent for Student Achievement at the Nevada Department of Education. Under his leadership, Nevada designed and implemented an ambitious Every Student Succeeds Act plan to address long-standing achievement and opportunity gaps by embracing the evidence base of knowledge.

Education

• PhD in educational leadership, University of Nevada, Reno
• MEd in educational leadership, University of Nevada, Reno
• BS in ecology and systematic biology, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo

Select Publications

Canavero, S., & Buckner, L. (2021). Aligned and coherent communications to serve the whole person: A workbook for state education agencies. WestEd

Evan, A., & Canavero, S. (2020). Four domains for significant and sustainable charter school improvement: A systems framework for the charter context. WestEd.

Canavero, S., & Wright, K. (2020). Students and families have unique stories to tell. The74

Chait, R., Evan, A., & Canavero, S. (2019). Considering turnaround for low-performing charter schools [Policy brief]. WestEd.

Bridgeland, J., Wilhoit, G., Canavero, S., Comer, J., Darling-Hammond, L., Farrington, C., Noguera, P., Shelton, J., Shriver, T., & Weiner, R. (2019). National Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development: A policy agenda in support of how learning happens. Aspen Institute.

Honors, Awards, and Affiliations

Canavero is a nationally recognized leader, as reflected by his service on boards and organizations. Canavero is serving his third term as a board member at the National Association of Charter School Authorizers, was elected by his fellow state school chiefs to the board of the Council of Chief State School Officers in 2017, is a member of Chiefs for Change, and is an Aspen-Pahara Fellow.