Gov. Nathan Deal’s top education adviser is leaving her post for the private sector, and her first gig
is to help Atlanta’s school system fend off his biggest education initiative.
Erin Hames is Gov.
Nathan Deal’s top policy adviser.
The Atlanta Public
Schools board voted 7-2 Monday evening to award a $96,000 no-bid contract to
Erin Hames to advise its administrators on how to avoid a state takeover. Hames
is departing the governor’s office at the end of August to take on consulting
work.
Hames, Deal’s deputy
chief of staff for policy and legislative affairs, is the architect of the
governor’s pitch for a statewide
“Opportunity School District.” The proposal, Deal’s signature 2015 legislative effort, would
give the state the power to seize control of failing schools, convert them into
charters or shut them down. It must be approved by a majority of voters in 2016
before it takes effect.
Hames is a former
middle school teacher who joined Gov. Sonny Perdue’s staff as education policy
adviser after graduating from law school. She stayed on with Deal’s team after
his election, rising quickly to become one of his top policy aides.
The school takeover
bill was one of her greatest challenges, as it needed two-thirds majorities in
both chambers to reach next year’s ballot. Through a mix of carrots and sticks,
Deal and his aides were able to cajole enough Democrats to cross party lines to
pass muster. And Hames, at the center of the fight, often told skeptical
lawmakers that the ultimate goal was to improve struggling schools so there was
no need for the district.
Deal said in a
statement Hames was “the right person at the right time for my administration”
and that she played a key role in developing his agenda the last five years.
“This move will allow
her to focus her full attention on improving classroom outcomes so that every
child has access to a great education, and it will allow organizations that
share her vision to also benefit from her talents,” said Deal. “I’m glad that
the governor’s office will continue to be one of those organizations benefiting
from her expertise and work ethic.”
She is the latest in a
string of high-profile staff members to leave the office after Deal’s 2014
re-election. Bart Gobeil, Deal’s chief operating officer, left
for a job with the Georgia Ports Authority earlier this summer. And Deal
messaging maestro Brian Robinson will depart on Friday for the private sector.
http://politics.blog.ajc.com/2015/08/10/nathan-deals-top-education-adviser-leaving-to-help-schools-fend-off-takeovers/
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