BATON ROUGE— Today, Governor Bobby Jindal announced the special election date for the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and the temporary appointment of Mary Johnson Harris. Harris will replace Walter Lee as the representative of BESE District 4 on the board.

According to statute, the board is comprised of eleven members. One member shall be a resident of and shall be elected by the electors of each of the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education districts. Three members shall be appointed by the governor from the state at-large, with consent of the Senate.

The primary election will be held Saturday, March 28, 2015, and the general election will be held Saturday, May 2, 2015.

Mary Johnson Harris, of Shreveport, is the Principal of South Highlands Elementary Magnet School. Harris has earned degrees and certifications from Louisiana State University in Shreveport, Louisiana Tech University, and Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. Harris has been awarded local, state, and national honors in education, including Caddo Parish Teacher of the Year, Louisiana Regional Teacher of the Year, LSUS Distinguished Educator, the Joyce and Charles Ravenna Exemplary Teacher Award, and the Milken Family Foundation National Educator Award. Harris will be appointed to serve as a representative of BESE District 4, as required by statute.

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