Nathan Thompson
Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise
Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin told the Examiner-Enterprise on Tuesday that the recent actions of State Superintendent Janet Barresi were not wise, but she will not ask her to resign.
Barresi has come under fire for the recent appointment of Larry Birney as an assistant superintendent overseeing accreditation and compliance for the Oklahoma Department of Education. Baressi created the position and hired Birney just weeks before voters go to the polls to select her replacement.
Birney, who has an extensive background in law enforcement, was the executive director for the Council of Law Enforcement Education and Training from 2008 until 2011, when he resigned following the creation of a panel to investigate his conduct. Birney is the husband of Barresi’s general council, Kim Richey.
“I think that Supt. Barresi needs to accept the fact that she lost the election,” Fallin said. “She needs to exit her job gracefully when the job ends. There are only a couple of months left. I don’t think it would be helpful at this point in time to have a vacancy (of State Superintendent). I think she can help with a smooth transition to whoever the next superintendent is, and to keep things peaceful and calm. I don’t think she should be hiring new positions.”
Barresi made the decision to hire Birney by using the powers that were given to the Superintendent of Public Education following the passage of House Bill 2139 in 2011.
The language of the bill allows the governor to make appointments to the state Board of Education, and modifies the terms of office for board members from a staggered six-year term to a four-year term that mirrored the election cycle.
The bill also created a new law, which empowered the state superintendent to organize and control the administration of the Department of Education — including the hiring of personnel, their appointment and their salaries.
Fallin said in light of Barresi’s actions, she would be in favor of allowing legislators to revisit the authority of the State Superintendent.
“I think it would be helpful if the Board (of Education) had more authority to be able to make decisions independently and also work with me as governor,” she said. “I think it is something we should look into this legislative session. I look forward to working with our legislators that helped draft that original legislation and see if we can make a way to improve upon the language.”
Ms. Barresi was elected to do a job. How about all the peanut gallery shutting their mouths and let her do the job.
Janet Barressi was not beaten in the November general election. She was essentially fired in the June primary, 6 months before she leaves office. She should make the transition easy. Instead she leaves land mines for her successor. This will be a problem for either Joy Hofmeister or John Cox