About

Dr. Jeffery O. Smith

Dr. Jeffery O. Smith was appointed in January 2026 as the Secretary of Education for the Commonwealth of Virginia by Governor Spanberger. He most recently served as the Executive Director and CEO of the Virginia Air and Space Science Center. With more than 32 years of service as a public-school educator, he spent 15 years as a superintendent, including seven years in West Point and eight in Hampton City Schools (HCS). Under his leadership, HCS reached historic milestones: for the first time, all 29 schools earned full accreditation without conditions, graduation rates rose from 88% to nearly 98%, and dropout rates declined from 5.1% to less than 1%. The school division strengthened its dual enrollment program with the Virginia Peninsula Community College, which during his tenure as the superintendent, yielded students earning over 25,000 dual enrollment credits and 100 high school graduates earned an associate degree as a part of their high school educational pursuit. He co-chaired the nationally recognized Academies of Hampton, which expanded career pathways and positioned Hampton as Virginia’s first Ford Next Generation Learning Community. 

Dr. Smith’s leadership has been honored at local, state, and national levels. He was named the Region II Superintendent of the Year, the 2020 Virginia Superintendent of the Year, one of four finalists for AASA National Superintendent of the Year, and he received the Virginia Department of Education’s (VDOE) Mary Peake Award for Education Equity. In 2020, the Virginia General Assembly bestowed upon Dr. Smith Resolution No. 208, and the House of Delegates Resolution 164, which recognized his dedicated service and the academic achievements realized by the students while serving as the superintendent of Hampton City Schools. Additional recognitions include the Peninsula Humanitarian Award, Hampton’s Distinguished Citizen Medal, Hampton University’s Presidential Award for Outstanding Citizenship, and the Exchange Club’s Distinguished Virginian Award. Upon his retirement, the Hampton City School Board named the state-of-the-art science wing at Kecoughtan High School the Dr. Jeffery O. Smith Science Wing in his honor.  

Dr. Smith’s civic engagement has been and remains one of continued leadership to include the following boards: past member of the Board of Trustees for the Williamsburg Health Foundation, and the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) and the Sentara Health Board of Directors.   

Dr. Smith is married to a fellow educator who he describes as his best friend, Dr. Lorianne Smith, and they are the proud parents of two blessed and amazing children. 

Connor Andrews

Connor Andrews currently serves as the Director for State Government Relations at the University of Virginia, where he acts as a liaison for the University with elected officials and state policymakers. In this role, he helps develop and implement legislative and budget strategies on behalf of the University, collaborates with higher education partners across the Commonwealth, and advocates for policies that strengthen Virginia’s education and workforce pipeline. He also serves as a co-chair for Governor-elect Spanberger’s transition education policy committee. 

Previously, Andrews served in the Office of Governor Ralph Northam as a policy analyst and later as Deputy Policy Director, where his portfolio focused primarily on education, workforce development, and labor policy. In these roles, he worked with secretariats, legislators, and stakeholders to help advance initiatives such as the G3 program and enhanced protections for student loan borrowers. Andrews was also responsible for staffing the Governor’s Children’s Cabinet, chaired by First Lady Pamela Northam, which supported whole-of-government efforts to improve outcomes for children and families. 

Andrews is a graduate of the University of Virginia, where he earned his undergraduate and Master of Public Policy degrees. He is also a graduate of the Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership. 

Anne Hyslop

Anne Hyslop was appointed Deputy Secretary of Education in January 2026. Prior to joining the Spanberger administration, she was Director of Policy Development for All4Ed, a national nonprofit advocacy organization committed to expanding equitable educational opportunities for students of color, students from low-income backgrounds, and other marginalized groups. Throughout her career in the public and nonprofit sectors, Anne has focused on developing effective federal and state policies that will ensure all students, but especially those furthest from opportunity, enter kindergarten ready to learn and graduate high school college- and career-ready.  

Prior to All4Ed, Anne served as a senior policy advisor at the U.S. Department of Education during the Obama administration. She led the agency’s efforts to write regulations, guidance, and policy for accountability, school improvement, and innovative assessments both during and following passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act. Through her past work for Chiefs for Change, Bellwether, New America, and Education Sector, she provided technical assistance to state policymakers, advised clients, conducted research, and wrote extensively on school accountability, high school graduation requirements, and college and career readiness.  

Anne began her career in state government, working on early childhood policy for former Governor Tim Kaine and the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation, where she managed the Commonwealth’s pilot quality rating and improvement system and other efforts to promote school readiness and access to high-quality preschool.  

She holds a bachelor’s degree in government from the College of William and Mary and a master’s degree in public policy from Georgetown University. 

Kate Maxlow

Kate Maxlow started as a third and fourth-grade teacher in Newport News Public Schools, and has since worked in several different educational areas. She has been an instructional technology coach, a Supervisor of Professional Learning, a Director of Innovation, and a Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment. 

Dr. Maxlow has written extensively about education and has had four books published, including Look, Listen, Learn, LEAD: A District-Wide Systems Approach to Teaching and Learning in PreK-12. Additionally, she has worked as an adjunct professor and consultant for Old Dominion University. In 2020, Dr. Maxlow received the Virginia Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (VASCD, now VATLL) Leadership Award for her work coordinating efforts to innovate the Hampton City Schools curriculum, and she was named a Leader to Learn from by EdWeek in 2024. 

She currently lives in Williamsburg with her two children and husband.

Andrea Mariscal-Guzman

Andrea Mariscal-Guzman began her post-graduate career in political campaigns, serving as Operations Lead for Latinos for Spanberger, engaging Latino voters across Virginia through direct outreach and community events during the gubernatorial election. She later worked as a Communications Director in a special election, developing voter education materials and managing digital outreach.  

As an AmeriCorps member with Edu-Futuro, Ms. Mariscal-Guzman supported leadership and college-readiness programming for high school students, providing mentorship, coordinating education events, and assisting with curriculum and program operations to advance youth development and empowerment.  

Her commitment to education and mentorship began in undergrad, where she revived a dormant mentorship program in partnership with Scholars Latino Initiative. She continued this work throughout graduate school by co-founding Primeros Pasos in Southwest Virginia, mentoring at-risk high school students and promoting informed planning for education, training, and career success after graduation. The program supported high school students in exploring multiple postsecondary pathways, including four-year colleges, community colleges, career and technical academies, and workforce development opportunities. 

She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from James Madison University and a master’s degree in public administration and public affairs from Virginia Tech.