Horace Mann

Horace Mann is known as "The Father of American Education." As secretary of the newly created board of education of Massachusetts, he established a single school system throughout the state instead of separate local school districts, urged separate classrooms for students at different levels of learning, and discouraged learning by rote and flogging as punishment. He also made sure to implement more and better equipped school houses, longer school years (until 16 years old), higher pay for teachers, and a wider curriculum.