# Ministry of Education (Chile)

The Ministry of Education (Spanish: Ministerio de Educación, MINEDUC) is the Ministry of State responsible for promoting the development of education at all levels, to assure all people access to basic education, to stimulate scientific and technological research and artistic creation, and the protection and enhancement of cultural heritage of the nation of Chile.
The current Minister of Education, since 16 August 2023, is Nicolás Cataldo.

## History

The ministry began in 1837 as part of the Ministry of Justice and Religious Instruction. In those years the ministry was responsible for overseeing educational institutions such as the Instituto Nacional de Chile and Universidad de Chile. Since 1887 it was named Ministry of Justice and Public Instruction.
The Ministry of Education was separated from the Ministry of Justice in 1927, and became responsible for primary education, secondary education, vocational education, libraries, archives and museums.
During the government of Eduardo Frei Montalva, the following institutions were created under Ministry of Education:
* Junta Nacional de Auxilio Escolar y Becas/National Board of School Assistance and Scholarships (JUNAEB)
* Centro de Perfeccionamiento, Experimentación e Investigaciones Pedagógicas/Center for Improvement, Educational Research and Experimentation (CPEIP)
* Junta Nacional de Jardines Infantiles/National Board of Daycare (JUNJI)

## List of ministers of education

| Name | Entered Office | Exited Office | Notes | Appointed by |
| Eduardo Barrios Hudtwalcker | 17 November 1927 | 17 October 1928 | Ind | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Pablo Ramírez Rodríguez | 17 October 1928 | 11 March 1929 | PR | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Mariano Navarrete | 11 March 1929 | 5 August 1930 | Militar | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Bartolomé Blanche Espejo | 5 August 1930 | 26 October 1930 | Militar | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Alberto Edwards Vives | 26 October 1930 | 28 April 1931 | PN | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Gustavo Lira Manso | 28 April 1931 | 13 July 1931 | Ind | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| José Manuel Ríos Arias | 13 July 1931 | 22 July 1931 | PL | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Miguel Letelier Espínola | 22 July 1931 | 23 July 1931 | PN | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Gustavo Lira Manso | 23 July 1931 | 26 July 1931 | PN | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Pedro Godoy Pérez | 26 July 1931 | 27 July 1931 | Ind | Pedro Opazo |
| Pedro Godoy Pérez | 27 July 1931 | 20 August 1931 | Ind | Juan Esteban Montero |
| Pedro Godoy Pérez | 20 August 1931 | 3 September 1931 | Ind | Manuel Trucco |
| Leonardo Guzmán Cortés | 3 September 1931 | 15 November 1931 | PR | Manuel Trucco |
| Santiago Labarca Labarca | 15 November 1931 | 7 April 1932 | PR | Juan Esteban Montero |
| Alfredo Bravo Zamora | 7 April 1932 | 5 June 1932 | PR | Juan Esteban Montero |
| Eugenio González Rojas | 5 June 1932 | 17 June 1932 | Ind | Socialist Junta |
| Carlos Soto Rengifo | 17 June 1932 | 8 July 1932 | | Socialist Junta |
| Carlos Soto Rengifo | 8 July 1932 | 1 August 1932 | | Carlos Dávila |
| Luis David Cruz Ocampo | 1 August 1932 | 14 September 1932 | Ind | Carlos Dávila |
| Luis David Cruz Ocampo | 14 September 1932 | 4 October 1932 | Ind | Bartolomé Blanche |
| Alberto Coddou Ortiz | 4 October 1932 | 24 December 1932 | Ind | Abraham Oyanedel |
| Domingo Durán Morales | 24 December 1932 | 19 April 1934 | PR | Arturo Alessandri |
| Osvaldo Vial Vial | 19 April 1934 | 26 August 1935 | PL | Arturo Alessandri |
| Francisco Garcés Gana | 26 August 1935 | 24 March 1937 | PL | Arturo Alessandri |
| Guillermo Correa Fuenzalida | 24 March 1937 | 24 December 1938 | PL | Arturo Alessandri |
| Rudecindo Ortega Masson | 24 December 1938 | 8 February 1940 | PR | Pedro Aguirre Cerda |
| Juan Antonio Iribarren Cabezas | 8 February 1940 | 10 June 1941 | PR | Pedro Aguirre Cerda |
| Raimundo del Río Castillo | 10 June 1941 | 6 October 1941 | PL | Pedro Aguirre Cerda |
| Ulises Vergara Osses | 6 October 1941 | 10 October 1941 | PR | Pedro Aguirre Cerda |
| Ulises Vergara Osses | 10 October 1941 | 2 April 1942 | PR | Jerónimo Méndez |
| Oscar Bustos Aburto | 2 April 1942 | 21 October 1942 | PR | Juan Antonio Ríos |
| Benjamín Claro Velasco | 21 October 1942 | 7 June 1943 | PR | Juan Antonio Ríos |
| Enrique Marshall Herrera | 7 June 1943 | 1 September 1943 | Ind | Juan Antonio Ríos |
| Benjamín Claro Velasco | 1 September 1943 | 6 October 1944 | PR | Juan Antonio Ríos |
| Enrique Marshall Herrera | 6 October 1944 | 14 May 1945 | Ind | Juan Antonio Ríos |
| Juan Antonio Iribarren Cabezas | 14 May 1945 | 3 February 1946 | PR | Juan Antonio Ríos |
| Benjamín Claro Velasco | 3 February 1946 | 6 September 1946 | PR | Juan Antonio Ríos |
| Humberto Enríquez Fródden | 6 September 1946 | 3 November 1946 | PR | Alfredo Duhalde |
| Alejandro Ríos Valdivia | 3 November 1946 | 2 August 1947 | PR | Gabriel González Videla |
| Enrique Molina Garmendia | 2 August 1947 | 7 July 1948 | Ind | Gabriel González Videla |
| Ulises Vergara Osses | 7 July 1948 | 22 July 1948 | PR | Gabriel González Videla |
| Armando Mallet Simonetti | 22 July 1948 | 7 February 1950 | PSA | Gabriel González Videla |
| Manuel Rodríguez Valenzuela | 7 February 1950 | 27 February 1950 | Ind | Gabriel González Videla |
| Bernardo Leighton Guzmán | 27 February 1950 | 4 February 1952 | FN | Gabriel González Videla |
| Eliodoro Domínguez Domínguez | 4 February 1952 | 29 July 1952 | PSA | Gabriel González Videla |
| Luis David Cruz Ocampo | 29 July 1952 | 3 November 1952 | Ind | Gabriel González Videla |
| María Teresa del Canto Molina | 3 November 1952 | 1 April 1953 | PF | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Juan Gómez Millas | 1 April 1953 | 14 August 1953 | PAL | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Oscar Fenner Marín | 14 August 1953 | 14 October 1953 | Militar | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Eduardo Barrios Hudtwalcker | 14 October 1953 | 5 June 1954 | Ind | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Oscar Herrera Palacios | 5 June 1954 | 24 March 1955 | Ind | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Tobías Barros Ortíz | 24 March 1955 | 6 April 1955 | Militar | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Kaare Olsen Nielsen | 6 April 1955 | 2 June 1955 | Militar | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Oscar Herrera Palacios | 2 June 1955 | 17 August 1955 | Ind | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Tobías Barros Ortíz | 17 August 1955 | 18 April 1956 | Militar | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| René Vidal Merino | 18 April 1956 | 27 August 1956 | Ind | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Francisco Bórquez Jopia | 27 August 1956 | 23 April 1957 | Ind | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Manuel Quintana Oyarzún | 23 April 1957 | 28 October 1957 | Ind | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Diego Barros Ortiz | 28 October 1957 | 3 November 1958 | Militar | Carlos Ibáñez del Campo |
| Francisco Cereceda Cisternas | 3 November 1958 | 15 September 1960 | PL | Jorge Alessandri |
| Eduardo Moore Montero | 15 September 1960 | 5 October 1961 | PL | Jorge Alessandri |
| Patricio Barros Alemparte | 5 October 1961 | 26 September 1963 | PL | Jorge Alessandri |
| Alejandro Garretón Silva | 26 September 1963 | 3 November 1964 | Ind | Jorge Alessandri |
| Juan Gómez Millas | 3 November 1964 | 17 February 1968 | Ind | Eduardo Frei Montalva |
| William Thayer Arteaga | 17 February 1968 | 4 March 1968 | PDC | Eduardo Frei Montalva |
| Máximo Pacheco Gómez | 4 March 1968 | 3 November 1970 | PDC | Eduardo Frei Montalva |
| Mario Astorga Gutiérrez | 3 November 1970 | 28 January 1972 | PR | Salvador Allende |
| Alejandro Ríos Valdivia | 28 January 1972 | 17 June 1972 | PR | Salvador Allende |
| Aníbal Palma Fourcade | 17 June 1972 | 2 November 1972 | PR | Salvador Allende |
| Jorge Tapia Valdés | 2 November 1972 | 5 July 1973 | PR | Salvador Allende |
| Edgardo Enríquez Frodden | 5 July 1973 | 11 September 1973 | PR | Salvador Allende |
| José Navarro Tobar | 12 September 1973 | 27 September 1973 | IND | Augusto Pinochet |
| Hugo Castro Jiménez | 27 September 1973 | 16 May 1975 | IND | Augusto Pinochet |
| Arturo Troncoso Daroch | 16 May 1975 | 3 December 1976 | IND | Augusto Pinochet |
| Luis Niemann Núñez | 3 December 1976 | 26 December 1978 | IND | Augusto Pinochet |
| Gonzalo Vial Correa | 26 December 1978 | 14 December 1979 | IND | Augusto Pinochet |
| Alfredo Prieto Bafalluy | 14 December 1979 | 22 April 1982 | IND | Augusto Pinochet |
| Álvaro Arriagada Norambuena | 22 April 1982 | 14 February 1983 | IND | Augusto Pinochet |
| Mónica Madariaga | 14 February 1983 | 19 October 1983 | IND | Augusto Pinochet |
| Horacio Aránguiz Donoso | 19 October 1983 | 29 July 1985 | IND | Augusto Pinochet |
| Sergio Gaete Rojas | 29 July 1985 | 11 July 1987 | IND | Augusto Pinochet |
| Juan Antonio Guzmán Molinari | 11 July 1987 | 5 June 1989 | IND | Augusto Pinochet |
| René Salamé Martín | 5 June 1989 | 11 March 1990 | Militar | Augusto Pinochet |
| Ricardo Lagos | 11 March 1990 | 28 September 1992 | PS | Patricio Aylwin |
| Jorge Arrate | 28 September 1992 | 11 March 1994 | PS | Patricio Aylwin |
| Ernesto Schiefelbein | 11 March 1994 | 20 September 1994 | DC | Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle |
| Sergio Molina | 20 September 1994 | 28 September 1996 | PPD | Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle |
| José Pablo Arellano | 28 September 1996 | 11 March 2000 | DC | Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle |
| Mariana Aylwin | 11 March 2000 | 3 March 2003 | DC | Ricardo Lagos |
| Sergio Bitar | 3 March 2003 | 14 December 2005 | PPD | Ricardo Lagos |
| Marigen Hornkohl | 14 December 2005 | 13 March 2006 | DC | Ricardo Lagos |
| Martín Zilic | 11 March 2006 | 14 June 2006 | DC | Michelle Bachelet |
| Yasna Provoste | 14 June 2006 | 17 April 2008 | DC | Michelle Bachelet |
| Mónica Jiménez | 14 April 2008 | 13 March 2010 | DC | Michelle Bachelet |
| Joaquín Lavín | 11 March 2010 | 18 July 2011 | UDI | Sebastián Piñera |
| Felipe Bulnes | 18 July 2011 | 29 December 2011 | RN | Sebastián Piñera |
| Harald Beyer | 29 December 2011 | 22 April 2013 | IND | Sebastián Piñera |
| Carolina Schmidt | 22 April 2013 | 11 March 2014 | IND | Sebastián Piñera |
| Nicolás Eyzaguirre | 11 March 2014 | 27 June 2015 | PPD | Michelle Bachelet |
| Adriana Delpiano | 27 June 2015 | 11 March 2018 | PPD | Michelle Bachelet |
| Gerardo Varela | 11 March 2018 | 9 August 2018 | IND | Sebastián Piñera |
| Marcela Cubillos | 9 August 2018 | 28 February 2020 | UDI | Sebastián Piñera |
| Raúl Figueroa | 28 February 2020 | 11 March 2022 | IND | Sebastián Piñera |
| Marco Antonio Ávila | 11 March 2022 | 16 August 2023 | Democratic Revolution | Gabriel Boric |
| Nicolás Cataldo | 16 August 2023 | Incumbent | Communist Party of Chile | Gabriel Boric |
    PR – Partido Radical
    PS – Partido Socialista
    PDC – Partido Democrata Cristiano
    PL – Partido Liberal
    ind – Independent
    PAL – Partido Agrario Laborista
    PF – Partido Femenino de Chile
    PSA – Partido Socialista Auténtico
    FN – Falange Nacional
    PN – Partido Nacional
    UDI – Unión Demócrata Independiente
    RN – Renovación Nacional
    PPD – Partido por la Democracia