Ky. Republican legislative leaders criticize Beshear’s Board of Education reorganization

Republicans Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers and House Education Chair State Rep. Regina Huff on Friday criticized Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s decision to reorganize the Kentucky Board of Education through executive order.

“Collaboration and cooperation has yet to come to Frankfort,” Stivers, R-Manchester, said in a statement, noting that Beshear had appointed no Republicans.

Huff, R- Williamsburg, said, “The very last thing that our children need is to become a pawn in a political game.”

The remarks come one day after Beshear’s new appointees were successful in obtaining the resignation of Kentucky Education Commissioner Wayne Lewis.

Beshear reorganized the state board of education on Tuesday, his inauguration day. He had promised to do that throughout his campaign in hopes that the new board would remove Lewis. Beshear had pledged to support public education and teachers in the state, many of whom had a tumultous relationship with Beshear’s opponent Republican Gov. Matt Bevin and weren’t happy with Lewis’ advocacy of charter schools.

Lewis was hired in April 2018 on the same day that board members appointed by Bevin forced the resignation of then-Commissioner Stephen Pruitt. Bevin had issued an executive order appointing seven new members to the board to fill seats left vacant when previous members’ terms had expired.

“We started this week with a promise of collaboration and cooperation,” Stivers said. “Respectfully, Governor Beshear’s rhetoric is not supported by his actions. The legislature didn’t support Governor Bevin changing this board by an executive order. We do not support Governor Beshear doing it either. The new governor has created a board without a single Republican on it and he received no input from Republicans in the Senate, the body that ultimately has confirmation authority over his appointments.

In response, Beshear’s communications director Crystal Staley said Friday, “Gov. Beshear appointed a group of individuals with extensive education experience, ranging from a former Kentucky teacher of the year to a former president of the University of Kentucky.

“State law specifically prohibits a governor from considering party registration in making these appointments. No one’s registration was pulled or reviewed as part of this process. Gov. Beshear is committed to handling this and other issues in a positive and constructive manner,” Staley said.

Stivers also criticized Beshear’s appointment as board chair of Louisville Democrat David Karem, a state lawmaker for 33 years and a previous Kentucky Board of Education member for seven years. Karem helped draft the Kentucky Education Reform Act of 1990.

“He has appointed my former colleague David Karem, who helped bring KERA, school takeovers and a tax increase that was the largest in the history of the Commonwealth,” Stivers said.

Karem declined to respond to the criticism, but he said that he had always been committed to public education and “in the time that I have, I will always work hard for public education.”

Huff in her statement said the Kentucky Board of Education was created to address the educational needs of children.

“It has to be protected from political maneuvering and made up of people with a vested interest in our children alone - educators, specialists, and advocates. Instead, the Board has to be allowed to focus on reaching our desires, outcomes and bringing stability, accountability and sustainability to our schools,” Huff said.

“When Governor Bevin asked us to give him the authority to make sweeping changes to the Board, the legislature chose not to do so and he made the decision to replace members using the appropriate authority based on the proper timeline. I would hope that Governor Beshear recognizes that something as critical as our state board of education should be free from politics and exempt from the damage it can cause to the institution of education,” she said.

State board members ousted by Beshear have so far been unsuccessful in stopping Beshear’s reorganization. Both the Kentucky Court of Appeals and the Kentucky Supreme Court denied their emergency motions on Thursday.

Ousted board member Rich Gimmel said Friday that the former board members who had filed the legal action were weighing their next options.

This story was originally published December 13, 2019 at 1:05 PM.