AP: Clausen resignation cuts tension

In her job as Louisiana Commissioner of Higher Education, Sally Clausen had become a polarizing figure, so few people at the state Capitol seemed surprised when Clausen announced she will resign from the post.

While people may be split in their opinions of Clausen and the circumstances leading to her resignation, there seems to be little disagreement the move can relieve some tension between higher education and lawmakers – and perhaps become a catalyst for better working relationships.

“Whether fair or unfair, she had become that lightning rod, and I think it will be easier for the Legislature to move forward on our agenda in taking her out of the equation,” said House Speaker Jim Tucker, R-Terrytown, even as he praised Clausen for decades of work.

Gov. Bobby Jindal issued a polite statement backing her resignation plans. “We appreciate Sally’s service to the state and support her decision,” the governor said.

Others were less kind. Rep. Jim Morris, R-Oil City, told a reporter with Gannett News Service, “I’m glad she’s gone.”

Clausen acknowledged she had become a distraction during a legislative session in which public colleges could face a new round of budget cuts and a host of micromanagement ideas while they’re seeking increased authority to raise tuition and pressure to improve performance.

“My hope is that in some small way, this decision will bring a sharper focus to these important issues,” Clausen wrote in the resignation letter she sent Tuesday to her governing board, the Board of Regents.

Her resignation from the job she’s held since July 2008 is effective July 1.

Clausen decided to step down after receiving sharp criticism for quietly retiring from her job and then being rehired without ever telling the Board of Regents.

In recent weeks, it was revealed Clausen retired in August from the $425,000-a-year job, then was rehired within a day – getting a $90,000 lump-sum payment in the process, for unused vacation time and sick leave. She also will begin receiving a $146,400-a-year pension in less than two months. Clausen only told a small group of her staff about the move.

She has said she filed her retirement paperwork because she was considering leaving the commissioner’s post to help care for her special-needs grandchild in Houston.

But that doesn’t explain why she didn’t tell her board members. And it only appeared to validate behind-the-scenes chatter about disarray at Regents and concerns about Clausen’s leadership skills.

Discussion about the retire/rehire move around the Louisiana Capitol worsened an already angry and tense situation. Lawmakers have been frustrated with college leaders for more than a year of budget hearings, with House members in particular calling higher education officials uncooperative, resistant to change and unwilling to provide details of their spending.

“We ask questions constantly and do not get the kind of information we ask for,” Sen. Mike Walsworth, R-West Monroe, groused about higher education just last week.

The problems may not have rested entirely with Clausen, but as the figurehead for higher education in the state, she didn’t make matters any better even as the tongue-lashings in budget hearings got worse.

It’s not Clausen’s first time creating controversy in the position.

In 1988, Clausen was appointed commissioner with the backing of former Gov. Edwin Edwards, for whom she had worked.

Newspaper accounts show she got just as many votes as were required from the Board of Regents to get the job, amid charges by some board members that the hiring was politically motivated and that she was unqualified for the position.

Clausen resigned a year-and-a-half later when then-Gov. Buddy Roemer said it was unlikely he would support her to lead a newly revamped higher education system. After she resigned, the Regents chairman told lawmakers Clausen wasn’t a good manager and misrepresented board policies.

Other board members defended Clausen, however, and backed her fitness for the post.

Two decades later, opinions still remain split on Clausen at the Louisiana Capitol.

– EDITOR’S NOTE: Melinda Deslatte covers the state Capitol for The Associated Press.