Paige, Rod (1933- )

US public servant, secretary of education 2001-04. As superintendent of schools of one of the nation's largest school districts, in Houston, Texas, from 1994, he instituted a range of reforms, which included incentive pay to reward teachers for outstanding performance and penalize those in charge of failing schools, and devolving authority on staffing, textbooks, and materials. He was instrumental in developing the No Child Left Behind Act (2001) under US president George W Bush, which increased school accountability for results.

Born in Monticello, Mississippi, Paige studied at Jackson State University in Mississippi and earned a doctorate from Indiana University. He later taught and, for a decade, was dean of the College of Education at Texas Southern University.