The Kentucky Board of Education has forced out Education Commissioner Wayne Lewis as part of an overhaul in the administration of newly inaugurated Gov. Andy Beshear.
The move comes two days after Beshear totally replaced the board, fulfilling a campaign promise that rallied educators who disagreed with policies of previous members appointed by former Republican Gov. Matt Bevin.
Lewis tendered a letter of resignation to the new board of education after a closed door meeting.
The board appointed Associate Commissioner Kevin Brown as the Interim Education Commissioner. The board will conduct a national search for the permanent commissioner.
Thursday was the first meeting of the new education board, which announced ahead of time that it would meet in closed session to discuss Lewis’ potential firing.
Beshear and education advocates have criticized Lewis for his stances supporting charter schools, a push for a state takeover of Louisville’s public school system in 2018 and collection of teacher absence records when educators protested at the state Capitol earlier this year.
The members of the previous board have filed motions to temporarily block the new board of education; the motions have been denied by Franklin Circuit Court, appeals court and the Kentucky Supreme Court.
This post will be updated.
