The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) is a non-partisan, non-profit organization of public officials who head departments of elementary and secondary education in the U.S. states, the District of Columbia, the Department of Defense Education Activity, the Bureau of Indian Education, and five U.S. territories. As of 1981, peer organizations include the American Association of School Administrators, National Association of State Boards of Education, National Congress of Parents and Teachers, National Education Association, and National School Boards Association.