The North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction is an elected constitutional officer in the executive branch of the government of the U.S. state of North Carolina. As the head of the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, the superintendent oversees the public school systems of the state. They also serve as the secretary of the North Carolina State Board of Education and are a member of the North Carolina Council of State. The incumbent is Catherine Truitt, who became superintendent on January 2, 2017. The position of state superintendent was originally created in 1852 to run the new Department of Public Instruction. The office was abolished in 1865 but reestablished by the 1868 state constitution as a member of the new State Board of Education. The duties of the superintendent have been altered over time by the North Carolina General Assembly. A new state constitution in 1971 designated the superintendent as the secretary of the Board of Education, but removed the office's voting power on the body. The relationship between the superintendent and the board since the 1960s has been characterized by conflict and confusion over their responsibilities. History of the office In 1837 the North Carolina General Assembly passed a common school law to combine state and local funds to create a public school system. In 1852 the assembly created the Department of Public Instruction to be led by the Superintendent of Common Schools. Calvin H. Wiley served in the office from January 1, 1853, until April 25, 1865, when the state declared its offices vacant due to the surrender of the Confederate States of America in the American Civil War. Later that year the General Assembly declined to appropriate state funds for public schools and abolished the position of superintendent, effectively terminating the public school system. In 1868 the state ratified a new constitution that provided for a system of public schools to be led by a Superintendent of Public Instruction and a State Board of Education, of which the superintendent was an ex officio member. Under this framework, the superintendent was tasked with managing the school system and implementing relevant laws, creating an annual report on education in the state, and studying effective educational techniques in other jurisdictions. The duties of the superintendent and the structure of the Department of Public Instruction have been altered over time by the General Assembly. In 1933 the legislature placed the