Gov. Phil Scott told the State Board of Education on Monday that he would prefer someone more experienced in management than education to replace state Secretary of Education Rebecca Holcombe, whose abrupt resignation took effect April 1.
In a letter delivered during a Monday morning board meeting to jump start the search for a new education secretary, Scott said, “I ask when you evaluate candidates you prioritize applicants who above all else have experience managing complex issues (not necessarily education), share my optimistic vision of what our system of education must be and have enthusiasm for the work of Vermont’s school boards.”
Scott’s letter sheds some light on what may have led to Holcombe’s sudden departure from his administration. In his wish list of characteristics of candidates to replace Holcombe he also said he would want someone who shares his views on “right sizing” the school system, and someone who can turn schools into an economic development tool.
Holcombe told teachers and administrators in a letter last Tuesday that she had submitted her letter of resignation the previous week, and that it would be effective April 1.
The governor characterized Holcombe’s decision as “personal.” Holcombe herself did not elaborate, and she has declined to be interviewed. In her letter last Tuesday, Holcombe, a Democrat who was Scott’s first cabinet appointment as governor, said merely that she was “confident the Governor, working with the state board of education, will appoint a secretary who shares his vision.”
Act 98, the legislation that elevated the head of the Agency of Education to a cabinet level position, clearly states the education secretary must have expertise in education management and policy, and demonstrated leadership and management abilities, said Krista Huling, chair of the State Board of Education.
“Part of what the state board is looking for is someone who has those two things per the statute,” Huling said. One of the reasons lawmakers involved the state board in choosing an education secretary was to ensure Vermont doesn’t end up with someone like Betsy DeVos, secretary of education in the Trump administration, who has no educational management experience, Huling said.
Even before they had received the letter from Scott, and had a chance to read over his suggested candidate credentials, board members had balked at the idea of hiring someone with more expertise in management than education — as had been suggested at Monday’s meeting by one of the board’s Scott appointees.
“The secretary of education is first and foremost a CEO responsible for running not only a large agency of state government but being the public face and voice of educational policy in Vermont,” John Carroll, a recently appointed member with private sector background, told the board. “That to me, is what a good CEO does. Just because somebody is very knowledgeable about education, has a Ph.D. or years of experience teaching doesn’t at all indicate qualifications as a CEO.”
Board member Stacey Weinberger said she regarded a background in education policy as essential, and that she would be looking for “someone with steep understanding of education policy.”
The purpose of the emergency meeting was to initiate the search for a new permanent secretary but board members also expressed frustration at what they saw as inaction by the governor’s office, which despite having advance notice of Holcombe’s departure had taken no action to install an interim secretary, leaving the agency leaderless.
Board chair Huling said she reached out to the governor’s office after learning of Holcombe’s departure. “I have made myself available. I told him I will meet any place, but I did not hear anything back. I also communicated the state board will work as fast as possible to find a replacement and that we will be partners,” she said.
Huling said Monday morning that the governor’s office had not yet responded.
“I was hoping at this point for an update from the governor’s office,” she said. “I do not have an update.”
Rebecca Kelley, the governor’s spokesperson, said on Monday, “We’ll have an acting secretary named in the next day or so, and then expect to appoint an interim within the next week or two.”
Agency staff said in the meantime deputy secretaries are stepping up and everyone is doing whatever is necessary to make things run smoothly, but, said Molly Bachman, an agency attorney, “There has been no direction from the governor’s office.”
Members of the state board attending Monday’s meeting expressed disappointment at the slow response of the executive branch.
“A week after the governor’s office knew of this situation — a week later — there is not a decision made,” said Carroll. “It further continues a vacuum of decision and authority. It can’t be helpful to anybody in this building. I think we have an interest in doing all we can to not further delay a process and if at all possibly enhance it so a thoughtful decisions is made ASAP.”
The board went into executive session to come up with a list of four candidates to serve on an interim basis, saying they would submit the list in a letter to Scott in hopes that it would aid him in moving the process along. The agency is likely to be under the leadership of an interim secretary while it completes the implementation of Act 46.
It is unclear whether the State Board of Education should be involved in choosing an interim secretary. “Because it doesn’t speak to that, there is no clear path forward,” Huling said. While there is a need to fill the vacancy, the board wants to ensure the position is filled by a qualified candidate.
Huling said the names they would be forwarding to the governor are “friendly suggestions, people we want to make the governor aware of … More than anything we wanted to help the governor expedite the process to make sure the interim is filled.”
The state board set up a search committee on Monday for a new permanent secretary, and approved funding for national advertising for the position.
John O’Keefe, another Scott appointee, said he wants to see someone leading the agency on an interim basis by week’s end. “The longer the ship is without a captain, the further the ship will go adrift.”
Huling said she wants to move swiftly on finding a permanent secretary.
The state board is responsible for soliciting resumes, vetting candidates, interviewing finalists and submitting several names to the governor for consideration. The governor can send them back to the drawing board if he doesn’t like any of the candidates. For that reason, Huling said, board members appreciate his letter explaining what he wants in a candidate.
“It is hard for us to vet exactly what he is looking for, but I think our job is to help him find qualified candidates,” she said.
Huling said the Scott administration has said the process would take three months, but she believes they can turn it around sooner. “We are moving quickly,” she said. “I reassured them, three months may be too much time. We are serious.”
