Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill

TRENTON – Today, Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill announced Lily Laux as her nominee to be the next Commissioner of Education. Laux has nearly two decades of experience as an educator, in nonprofit work, and leading statewide education departments, including serving as the Deputy Commissioner for the Texas Education Agency.  Alongside Gov.-elect Sherrill and Lt. Gov.-elect Caldwell, Laux will help improve literacy outcomes, expand access to pre-K, increase mental health resources, modernize and stabilize the school funding formula, and invest in high-impact tutoring so every child has the opportunity to succeed.

 

“New Jersey is proud to have some of the best schools in the country, yet too often student experience varies by ZIP code and resources are misspent or not directed appropriately. Ensuring every student has access to a world-class education is a top priority for my administration. That’s why I am proud to nominate Lily Laux to be the next Commissioner of Education. Lily is a lifelong public servant and educator with decades of experience helping children learn and thrive. I look forward to working with her to invest in mental health services, high-impact tutoring, and other critical programs that will expand opportunity and help our children get ahead,” said Governor-elect Mikie Sherrill.

 

“I am proud to support Lily Laux as our next Commissioner of Education. As an educator, I have always believed education is the key to a fair society. I look forward to working with Laux to ensure every child has access to a high-quality education that will open doors and create opportunities. With decades of education work, she is exactly the type of experienced leader we need to deliver for our students,” said Lt. Governor-elect Dr. Dale Caldwell.

 

“It’s an honor to be nominated as the next Commissioner of Education and I thank Gov.-elect Sherrill and Lt. Gov.-elect Caldwell for their trust in me. We share the same powerful commitment to ensuring New Jersey’s students are prepared not only for college and careers, but have access to real opportunities to personally thrive. A high-quality education does not just open doors and create opportunities, but can inspire young people to pursue their dreams. Our responsibility is clear: ensure every student, statewide, has access to an outstanding education. I look forward to serving the over 1 million New Jersey students every day and fighting to provide them the resources they need to succeed,” said Lily Laux, Ph.D.

Lily Laux is a Principal at ILO Group, where she partners with state agencies, districts, and cross-sector leaders to move from strategy to execution on major priorities. Previously, Laux served as Deputy Commissioner at the Texas Education Agency, supporting over 1,200 school districts and nearly 5.5 million students. During her nearly seven years at TEA, she led the implementation of historic school finance reform and the agency's COVID-19 response, trained every K–3 Texas educator on the science of teaching reading, developed open-source instructional materials adopted by 600+ districts, and overhauled college and career pathways, resulting in a fourfold increase in students graduating with both a diploma and associate degree. Laux has also held positions as the Executive Director of Economic Mobility Systems, a nonprofit improving secondary and postsecondary outcomes for underserved students, and with Teach For America. She began her career as a middle school teacher in Memphis, Tennessee. Laux earned her bachelor's degree from Columbia University, her master's in teaching from the University of Memphis, and her Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin.