The retirement of Andy Tompkins as the state commissioner of education is a huge loss for Kansas.

The optimistic, highly regarded educator helped lead the state education department and board of education through many difficult issues since 1996. His departure will leave not only a personnel opening but will create an opening for a major shift in state education policy and priorities.

His exit was announced as a “retirement,” but Tompkins also indicated he would pursue “other education opportunities.” To anyone who has observed the activities of the Kansas State Board of Education over the last decade, it seems likely Tompkins simply had grown weary of the board’s infighting and efforts to inject far-right conservative values into state education policy.

Tompkins was an experienced and knowledgeable educator, having served as a teacher and principal and as the superintendent of three Kansas school districts. He provided an important buffer between the sometimes capricious actions of the board and the state’s public schools. That could now change.

According to the Kansas Constitution, the next commissioner of education will be appointed by the state board of education, a 10-member board that now has six members who are identified as social conservatives. If the appointment of Tompkins’ replacement is used to push a conservative agenda for the education department, the effect on state schools could be significant.

Already the board, with the support of Atty. Gen. Phill Kline is investigating the possibility of launching another court battle over the right to place stickers on the state’s science books disclaiming the theory of evolution. If an education commissioner who is supportive of this and other similar policies is chosen, it not only will affect the education of students across the state, it may well encourage the “retirement” of other key, veteran members of the Education Department staff.

It seems likely that the combination of Tompkins’ departure and the current makeup of the Board of Education may prompt the revival of a proposal that has been made in the Kansas Legislature several times, including last year, to abolish the board and put the Education Department under the supervision of a new Secretary of Education. The new post would be a cabinet-level position appointed by the governor.

Having a state school board made up of representatives elected from districts across the state has a great democratic feel, but the election of the board too often doesn’t get the attention it deserves from state voters. The result could be a board that doesn’t accurately represent the residents of the state. When that happens, it makes lawmakers and Kansas residents look more seriously at changing the way it operates.

Andy Tompkins deserves Kansans’ thanks for the job he has done for the last nine years and our best wishes on whatever opportunities he chooses to pursue after he leaves his state office in June. His departure, along with the high-profile actions the state school board seems determined to pursue, also should raise Kansans’ awareness of the operations of the Kansas Department of Education and the important role the department plays in the future of Kansas schools.