For the first time since 2005, the Texas Senate has confirmed someone to serve a full term as head of the State Board of Education. Barbara Cargill, a Republican from The Woodlands, was appointed by Gov. Rick Perry in 2011.
Cargill has supported a measure that requires students to question evolution. State Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin, says Cargill reassured him that she would not allow her religious conservatism to interfere with her leadership of the board.
“I felt like this is someone who will serve the people of Texas as the chair of the State Board of Education better than her predecesssors,” Watson said. “She was certainly answering questions and making promises and commitments better than her predecessors.”
Cargill’s predecessors were Don McLeroy and Gail Lowe, both religious conservatives who failed to win Senate confirmation.
