Gov. Inslee Reaches ‘Outside’ Olympia for Chief of Staff-Chooses Renton School Superintendent

Governor Jay Inslee announced Thursday morning his choice for chief-of-staff will be the Superintendent of the Renton School District.Mary Alice Heuschel has been in charge of the Renton School District for 7 years, and also served as one of the chairmen for Inslee's transition team.   A former special education teacher, Heuschel was a former teacher of the year.

While she is relatively unknown outside the Renton School District, she is not completely outside of Oympia, she did serve as Deputy for the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction for six years.  It is believed Inslee made her his choice because he made education one of his top priorities in the election.   Lawmakers are looking to make extensive funding for education during Inslee's term.

While little can be discerned from her backround as to how Heuschel will manage Inslee's staff, his transition team of 34 members includes a significant number of union, pro-union, and other leaders who lean significantly liberal on numerous issues.  His team also includes controversial former Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown, who, like outgoing Governor Gregoire, agreed almost lock-step with the policies and philosophy of the Obama Administration.