Jindal asks BESE member to quit post

• By WILL SENTELL
• Advocate Capitol News Bureau
• Published: Jul 1, 2009 - UPDATED: 10:55 a.m.

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Tammie McDaniel of Oak Ridge, a member of the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, has been asked to quit her post by Gov. Bobby Jindal's administration, McDaniel said this morning.

"I have not made a decision yet but I expect it after the holiday," McDaniel said in a telephone interview.

McDaniel is one of Jindal's three appointees to the 11-member board. The panel sets policies for about 650,000 public school students statewide.

It is highly unusual for a governor to ask one of his own appointees to step down, especially just 18 months after she was named.

Exactly what triggered the resignation request is unclear.

McDaniel noted that she has backed Jindal on key education votes.

"I have placed a high priority on the governor's education agenda and I have done so without exception," she said.

But McDaniel is also considered sort of a gadfly on the board and has clashed with state Superintendent of Education Paul Pastorek. She has also been critical of some operations in the Recovery School District in New Orleans, which is a Pastorek priority.

The request for her resignation is sure to trigger controversy among lawmakers who have feuded with the superintendent.

"Despite the fact that I supported controversial reforms I continue to enjoy support from educators and legislators around the state," she said.

"It is not easy to be the person who asks tough questions about the budget or policy decisions but I believe the governor expects this and I believe Louisiana voters expect it as well," McDaniel said.

The superintendent just finished a two-month legislative session where he frequently clashed with key lawmakers, including some who are McDaniel allies.

McDaniel, 51, is a former principal and teacher who also worked as a northeast Louisiana campaign strategist for Jindal in his winning race for governor in 2007.