One of the nine East Baton Rouge Parish School Board members resigned a few days ago. I have no idea what Katie Kennison was thinking.
Like lots of people in Baton Rouge, I can guess what she was thinking when she sent her board colleagues a brief email: “Dear all, I quit. Thanks, Katie Kennison.” She sent it at 4:44 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 3, the day before Labor Day, and just days before the school board was scheduled to deal with a significant issue that she had been fussing about — bus transportation.
The school schedule for middle and high school students changed three times in the first month of school.
If she cared so much about the bus schedule for East Baton Rouge children, why would she cut the line, and vacate her seat?
When the school year started, too many of the district's buses weren't working, there weren't enough bus drivers and changing bus routes confused students and parents, causing chaos.
It was just last month that Kennison spent several days with district transportation workers learning about their individual and group concerns — and their concerns for the system's students and their safety. She won them over by allowing them to lead her through the issues. She locked them in when she called for the school superintendent to resign because he had failed to respond to the transportation crisis.
That was Aug. 24.
Just 10 days later, she resigned.
Only eight months into her term, and she's done. Sorta.
Kennison rose to prominence as a Democratic candidate running against an incumbent Republican to represent District 8, representing southeast Baton Rouge. No one expected her to win. After all, who runs a campaign without money, without supporters and, essentially, without anything that looks like a campaign?
But she ran against incumbent Connie Bernard, a controversial board member who had been caught shopping online during a school board meeting and who faced a recall after opposing the renaming of Robert E. Lee High School.
Bernard filed to run for reelection. Then she changed her mind, but her name was on the ballot. When election results put her in a runoff with Kennison, she changed her mind and ran for reelection despite her earlier pledge to withdraw from the race.
What a choice for voters: One candidate who waffled on whether she wanted the job. Another candidate who did next-to-nothing to win the seat.
Maybe-I-do-maybe-I-don't Bernard almost held on to her seat. I'm-no-politican-I'm-a-parent Kennison beat her with 53% last fall.
Advocate reporter Charles Lussier described her this way: "After joining the board, Kennison was a striking presence. With no groups or backers to curry favor with, Kennison has been an independent vote. She also gained attention for her adventurous and sometimes comedic fashion sense."
At Thursday night's school board meeting, Kennison was a no-show.
Who knows what will happen? Technically, Kennison hasn't resigned. To make her resignation official, she must send a letter to the Louisiana secretary of state.
