On November 3, 2005, the "Harvard Educational Review" interviewed Margaret Spellings, the eighth U.S. Secretary of Education. Spellings, who was confirmed as secretary of education on January 20, 2005, served as assistant to the president for domestic policy during George W. Bush's first term, and was responsible for the development of various elements of the president's domestic policy agenda, including the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). Spellings's first year as secretary has been especially active, marked by increased resistance by some states to NCLB's school and student accountability requirements, the massive task of responding to the needs of children and families displaced by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, and Spellings's own calls to address what she believes are serious problems with the U.S. higher education system. "HER" invited Spellings to discuss these issues and to reflect broadly on her first year as secretary of education. "HER" Editors J. D. LaRock and Hanna Rodriguez-Farrar conducted the interview in Spellings's office at the U.S. Department of Education in Washington, D.C. (Contains 5 notes.)