State Board Of Education Member Resigns, Says It's Time For 'Fresh Perspective'

Updated June 6 at 10:35 a.m.

More personnel changes are coming to the State Board of Education. One member sent the governor his letter of resignation this week, and some others come to the end of their terms later this month.

While Gordon Hendry, who works as first vice president of CBRE Inc., doesn’t have a clear answer for what he’ll be up to in his free time after he leaves the board after serving nearly six years, he is looking forward to having more of it.

He says he’s proud of the work done during his time on the board, specifically on virtual schools and education, and the scholarship program for Hoosier students to become teachers in the state. He led the committee to create policy recommendations on virtual schools last year and some of those recommendations became law during this year’s legislative session.

But he says, it’s time for change.

“I feel like we’ve accomplished a lot, and I think it’s time that somebody bring a fresh perspective to the board,” he says.

Hendry’s resignation is effective at the end of the month. After that, the governor will appoint a replacement to finish out Hendry’s term ending in 2021. Four other members’ current terms come to an end at the end of this month too, but a couple of those could be renewed by the governor.

Former board member Vince Bertram resigned in November, to spend more time working as president and CEO of the STEM-focused education group Project Lead The Way, but has since been replaced by high school teacher Greg Gastineau.

CLARIFICATION: A previous version of this story did not mention Gordon Hendry's position with CBRE INC., and in the interest of clarity this story has been updated to reflect the voluntary nature of state board members.