By Tony McVeigh
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wkms/local-wkms-906942.mp3
Frankfort, KY – The Kentucky Board of Education may be headed for major realignment, as Governor Steve Beshear prepares to fill seven positions on the panel. Kentucky Public Radio's Tony McVeigh surveys the unusually high number of openings.
The 11 voting members of the state school board are appointed by the governor to four year terms. The appointments are staggered, but with reappointments and other factors, the board now finds itself in the unique position of having seven openings. The terms of seven board members - all appointed by former Gov. Ernie Fletcher - expired on April 14th. One of those members is C.B. Akins of Lexington, who wouldn't mind a second term.
"I don't seek the office," said Akins. "Never have. I've always jokingly said that if I run for anything it'll be the border. But if he would ask me to serve again, I would seriously consider that."
Board Chairman Joe Brothers of Elizabethtown is also facing possible replacement and he, too, would like to continue serving.
"You know, I very much enjoy this," said Brothers. "I spent 25 years being on a local board or the state board and I grew up in a family where my father was a school board member. So, I very much have a desire to work for children and do things that improve student achievement."
Even if reappointed, Brothers cannot be re-elected chairman because he's already served three terms, and that's the limit. Other Fletcher appointees whose terms have expired are Kaye Baird of Pikeville, Jeanne Ferguson of Louisville, Austin Moss of Hopkinsville, Judy Gibbons of Lakeside Park and Doug Hubbard of Bardstown. Not all seven want to be reappointed, but it remains to be seen how many new appointees will come onboard. Gov. Steve Beshear is still weighing his options, but says both continuity and new faces are important.
"I'm being very deliberate and looking at where we should go - the kinds of people we should have involved," said Beshear. "We've had some great folks on there in the past and I'm determined that we'll continue that kind of tradition in terms of quality in the future."
"It's a hard board because the issues are very technical," said Bob Sexton of the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence. "And they matter a lot to people. And they have long meetings and they have to digest lots of materials. So, it's just tough duty. And we owe people who do it - especially if they do it well - a lot of gratitude."
Sexton says Gov. Beshear faces a daunting task. The new board must oversee implementation of new student assessment standards and the state's continuing efforts to land hundreds of millions of federal Race to the Top dollars. Sharon Oxendine of the Kentucky Education Association agrees with Sexton, and offers this advice to the governor.
"I would hope that he would look for folks, who like him, want to protect public schools," said Oxendine. "Want to make sure that they have every opportunity, but are not afraid to try new and innovative things."
Since taking office in December 2007, Gov. Beshear has made four appointments to the board. One of those four, David Karem of Louisville - a key architect of the 1990 Kentucky Education Reform Act - says he enjoys working with the current board, and sees no need for wholesale restructuring.
"How do I characterize this?" asked Karem. "There are no radicals on the left or the right! I mean, they're good people who are focused on trying to move the state forward, and require high standards and get the best out of the local school districts."
Gov. Beshear's other appointees are Dorie Combs of Richmond, Billy Harper of Paducah and Brigette Ramsey of Pendleton County. Their terms expire in April 2012. The board's next scheduled meeting is in August, and the governor hopes to have the seven slots filled by July 1st. The board may hold a special meeting, or retreat, soon thereafter to help new members get acclimated. One of the first items of business for the restructured board will be election of new officers.