Before assuming her presidency at FCC, President Burmaster was the president at Nicolet College since 2009. From 2001 to 2009, she served as the elected Wisconsin State Superintendent of Public Instruction. In that capacity, she also served as president of the national Council of Chief State School Officers. Earlier in her career, President Burmaster was a teacher and principal at all levels — elementary, middle, and high school. She served on the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents, the Wisconsin Technical College System State Board, and the Governor’s Council on Workforce Development, as well as numerous national educational boards.
President Burmaster holds honorary doctorates from Edgewood College in Madison, Wisconsin, and Beloit College in Beloit, Wisconsin. Burmaster earned her Master of Science in Educational Administration from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She also holds a Bachelor of Music with Honors in Music Education from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
She and her husband, John, have three adult children and three grandsons.