H-L calls for entire Kentucky Board of Education to resign

Education chief: Begin search by getting a new board

Gov. Ernie Fletcher overhauled the Kentucky Board of Education last year with a spate of new appointees, some of whom said they supported exposing students to alternatives to the theory of evolution, including intelligent design.

Instead, students and the public have been exposed to a search for a new education commissioner that has been both unintelligent and ill-designed.

Just last weekend, Leon Mooneyhan, a candidate for the job as interim commissioner, said he had "never been subjected to a more unprofessional set of circumstances," in his life.

"I don't see any Kentucky educator that would want to apply for the job," the retired Shelby County superintendent of schools said.

If Fletcher cares at all about education in Kentucky, he should ask the entire board to resign so he can appoint members who have the capacity and desire to improve public education in the state rather than obsess over irrelevant hot-button issues.

But since that would be a sign that the governor is able to learn from his mistakes, something he's been unable to do in the past, the board itself should at least put the commissioner search on hold until after the election.

A brief history: The board hired a well-regarded search firm in December to find and vet candidates after Commissioner Gene Wilhoit announced he was leaving.

In April, the board named Barbara Erwin as its first choice despite her very modest qualifications and stuck with her even as news reports uncovered discrepancies in her resume and painful controversies in past jobs. Erwin finally walked away from the $220,000 a year job just three days before starting work, predictably blaming her problems on aggressive media coverage.

The board, for its part, blames the search firm. Board observers say deep divisions within the group make it almost impossible to move forward.

Despite the rush to assess blame and analyze the board, this isn't a parlor game without serious consequences; it's about finding a great leader who can help Kentucky's children get a better shot at a good education.

And this botched search leaves serious questions about whether the current board can oversee a national search, much less convince an outstanding candidate to come here if the board ever found one.

Kentucky's students deserve better.

This from the Herald-Leader.