When Indiana voters elected Glenda Ritz superintendent of public instruction over incumbent Tony Bennett in 2012, it was a major upset.
Two years later, there are some who seem to find it difficult to accept this outcome. And who, more to the point, would prefer to disregard the will of the people.
How else to explain the numerous efforts to reduce Ritz's authority as superintendent and leave the lone Democratic statewide officeholder with less power than the man she succeeded. Republican Gov. Mike Pence -- who, incidentally, received fewer votes in 2012 than Ritz -- went so far as to create an additional layer of government to oversee state educational initiatives. For all intents and purposes, it was a second education department.
Now comes word that the Indiana State Board of Education has voted to pass a measure establishing a committee to review the superintendent's ability to set the board agenda. A separate measure, which passed 9-1, would mandate that the board receive regular updates on the status of the state's No Child Left Behind waiver.
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