The New Hampshire Executive Council unanimously confirmed Andrew Cline to the state Board of Education on Wednesday, and Gov. Chris Sununu said he would soon ask Cline to serve as board chairman.
Cline, the former editorial page editor for the New Hampshire Union Leader, was nominated by Sununu last month after the governor decided not to renominate former chairman Tom Raffio – who has served for the past four years.
Executive Councilor Andru Volinsky, a Democrat from Concord, said he was disappointed Sununu decided not to reappoint Raffio.
“I think he served the state quite well,” Volinsky said. However, the councilor said he would vote in favor of Cline, whom he called “a thoughtful conservative who will add to the state board’s work.”
Democratic Councilor Chris Pappas of Manchester also voiced his support for the incoming chairman, saying he was impressed by Cline’s commitment to visit the state’s poorer school districts.
“He has the intelligence and passion to do the job well,” Pappas said. “He pledged to bring balance and be a check and balance on the Department of Education and the commissioner if need be.”
At Wednesday’s Executive Council hearing, Sununu also nominated his head budget writer Charlie Arlinghaus as commissioner for the Department of Administrative Services, which oversees state financial services, human resources management and state facilities, among other duties.
If confirmed, Arlinghaus will succeed outgoing commissioner Vicki Quiram, who resigned last month to accept a new job in California. Quiram’s term ran through July 2020.
(Ella Nilsen can be reached at 369-3322, enilsen@cmonitor.com or on Twitter
@ella_nilsen.)