BISMARCK — The business manager of West Fargo Public Schools will be the new head of elementary and secondary education in North Dakota.
Levi Bachmeier has been appointed state superintendent of public instruction, to succeed Kirsten Baesler, who is
leaving the role for a federal education job.
Gov. Kelly Armstrong made the announcement during a news conference Tuesday, Oct. 21, at the Capitol in Bismarck.
“Levi has established himself as a trusted voice and highly capable leader in K through 12 education over the past decade,” Armstrong said.
Contributed / Gov. Kelly Armstrong Facebook page
Bachmeier’s role will begin after Baesler’s resignation. The U.S. Senate confirmed her as assistant secretary for elementary and secondary education in the U.S. Department of Education on Oct. 7.
Her resignation date and swearing-in for the federal position is still to be determined due to the ongoing federal government shutdown, Armstrong said.
Bachmeier thanked Armstrong for trusting in him.
“I will take that trust and work to build it and establish that same level of trust with every student and parent and school community here across our great state,” he said.
Bachmeier added that he intends to spend a lot of time visiting as many of the state’s 168 school districts as possible.
“I think the biggest thing I can say to students and parents across our great state is I’m a very proud product of our K-12 system. I am incredibly confident that it can be even better,” he said.
West Fargo schools sent a district-wide email to all staff Tuesday, notifying them of their business manager’s pending departure.
In the email, Superintendent Beth Slette said while Bachmeier’s leaving represents “a significant loss” for the district, his leadership, vision and commitment to public education will now benefit people statewide.
The district also said an interim business manager will be named by the end of this week to work alongside Bachmeier until he transitions to the state position.
A search for his permanent replacement will begin in spring of 2026, the district said, with a successor to begin employment on July 1, 2026.
The district also addressed what Bachmeier’s new role in Bismarck might mean for his wife, Rachel Bachmeier, who has been the principal at West Fargo High School since fall of 2022.
The couple has two young children who were in attendance for the public announcement Tuesday in Bismarck.
Contributed / Gov. Kelly Armstrong
In an email sent to West Fargo High School staff, Rachel Bachmeier said given the statewide reach and travel demands of her husband’s new position and their love of the West Fargo community, they will not relocate to Bismarck.
“We also want our daughters to be raised on the north side of West Fargo Public Schools and near their grandparents. While this will mean many adjustments for our week-to-week routine as a family, I want to make sure everyone knows I’m not going anywhere,” Rachel Bachmeier said in the email.
A first for Levi Bachmeier in his new job will likely be approving North Dakota’s first charter schools,
the establishment of which took effect in the state Aug. 1.
He said he needs to meet with Baesler to understand
how many charter school applications to expect.
“I think it comes down to the fact that they’re playing by the same rules as everybody else, and so I think we can look at them as centers for innovation,” Levi Bachmeier said.
As for the future of school choice in the form of education savings accounts or vouchers, Levi Bachmeier said he
supported Armstrong’s veto last spring of what he considered a voucher bill.
“Nobody should be opposed to choice. Is the policy promoting equal and fair choice for all, or is it benefiting a small subset of the population? That’s where I would draw the line and that’s where I’d say where public dollars should start and where they should stop,” he said.
Serving as business manager for West Fargo Public Schools since 2019, Levi Bachmeier previously worked as an education policy adviser and policy director for former North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum.
A graduate of Concordia College in Moorhead, he was also a social studies teacher and acting high school principal on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota from 2014-2016.
In taking the new position, Levi Bachmeier will resign his seats on the Board of Public School Education, Career and Technical Education Board and the State Board of Higher Education.
He’ll serve as state superintendent through the November 2026 general election, when voters will determine who completes the four-year term that runs through 2028.
While Levi Bachmeier has worked in numerous Republican-focused roles, he said he’ll always keep in mind what’s best for students in his new, nonpartisan role.
“You’re dealing with the most precious resources that people have, their taxes and their kids. So I’m not naive to say that it’s not political, but I’m going to work really hard to make sure that it’s not partisan,” he said.
