Published: October 28, 2009 09:00 pm      

Mounjoy leaving Beshear cabinet

Frankfort, Ky. — Helen Mountjoy resigned as Secretary of the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet, Gov. Steve Beshear announced Wednesday.

Mountjoy will continue to serve on Beshear’s recently announced Transforming Education in Kentucky (TEK) task force, a group the governor has charged with guiding Kentucky’s next steps in education reform.

Mountjoy said she is resigning to spend more time with her family and because she is tired of the long commute from her home in Owensboro.

“Education and workforce development are the issues closest to my heart, and it’s been a privilege to serve as cabinet secretary,” Mountjoy said. “I am looking forward to continuing some of that work, and I’m also looking forward to spending more time with my family in Owensboro.”

Mountjoy served on Beshear’s transition team after his 2007 election and the new governor appointed her cabinet secretary soon thereafter. Mountjoy served on the Kentucky Board of Education for 15 years, through the critical implementation stages of the 1990 Kentucky Education Reform Act, and served as its chair for six years. She was also a member of the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence.

Before joining Beshear’s cabinet, Mountjoy served as vice president of the Greater Owensboro Economic Development Corporation.

Beshear said he will immediately begin the search for Mountoy’s successor.

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