LINCOLN – Gov. Jim Pillen, who will soon take control of the state historical society, wants to personally select the board president.
Nebraska Governor Jim Pillen (Paul Hamel/Nebraska Examiner)
Pillen on Wednesday called for applications for the Nebraska Historical Society’s president position, with a deadline of July 3. The position carried a salary of $164,800 a year from his predecessor.
In doing so, the governor abandoned the selection process by the Nebraska Historical Society Board of Directors, which had identified four finalists by January.
New Law Changes the Process
The board was ready to begin interviewing finalists when a bill was introduced in the Nebraska Legislature that would change the Nebraska Historical Society from an independent state agency controlled by a director and board of directors to an agency overseen by the governor.
The Assembly passed Bill 1169, which would allow the governor to appoint the commissioner, with the approval of state legislators. Under the bill, the commissioner would serve at the pleasure of the governor. The bill will become law on July 18.
In the past, they acted at the pleasure of the Nebraska Historical Society’s Board of Trustees, a 14-member committee elected in part by the members of the Nebraska Historical Society and in part appointed by the Governor, which is now an advisory committee to the president.
At this time, our goal is to make the process as smooth as possible and reduce the burden on staff as much as possible while continuing to operate our agencies.
– Shawn Flowerday, current chairman of the Nebraska Historical Society Board of Directors
Current Lincoln Board Chairman Shawn Flowerday said the board recommended the governor choose from among the four finalists who had already been vetted, but Pillen opted to conduct his own selection process, which became Pillen’s prerogative under the new law.
Flowerday said the four finalists will be sent to the governor to be considered in the selection process.
“Right now, we’re just trying to keep the process as smooth as possible and ease the burden on our employees while still keeping the agency running,” he said. “We’ll wait to see what reforms the administration wants to make and do our best to accommodate that.”
Interestingly, Governor Pillen’s media release referred to History Nebraska by its old name, the Nebraska State Historical Society. A spokesperson for the governor did not immediately respond to a question about whether that was a hint at a possible reversion to the old name, or whether that was unintentional.
Our previous director, Trevor Jones, implemented the name change in 2018 to provide a more accessible name that reflected what we do.
confusion
The proposed governance changes come after recent turmoil at the historic agency, including Jones’ resignation two years ago, an audit that criticized Jones for orchestrating $270,000 in misappropriation of funds and felony charges of theft by fraud filed against Jones by the Nebraska Attorney General’s office.
Jones, 52, was denied a request to have the charges dismissed and is awaiting trial in Lancaster County District Court. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison. Jones has pleaded not guilty.
Bayard State Senator Steve Erdman (Courtesy of the Unicameral Information Agency)
State Sen. Steve Erdman of Bayard, who introduced the bill to change the way the Nebraska Historical Society is run, said the Jones scandal and a past embezzlement case by a deputy director meant the historical society needed more oversight. Some board members objected, saying the current oversight was insufficient, but Erdman’s bill easily passed by a vote of 39-4.
The future of the History Nebraska Foundation, the fundraising foundation Jones founded, remains unclear: The foundation currently has no executive director, and Flowerday said no discussions are underway to hire a replacement.
Jones created the new foundation in the midst of a battle with the long-standing and well-funded Nebraska Historical Society Foundation over how to use donations. The Nebraska Historical Society was created to replace the existing foundation, but the new organization lacked support and donations, and its largest donation was $270,000 that Jones allegedly misappropriated.
Independent since 1878
Jill Dolberg, who led History Nebraska’s historic preservation office, has been serving as interim director since Jones stepped down.
At least four other states, including neighboring Iowa and Kansas, have historical societies whose presidents are selected by the governor, according to the American Association of State and Local History.
Since its founding in 1878, the Nebraska Historical Society has operated as an independent organization.
Applications for the Nebraska Department of History chair position may be submitted via the website https://governor.nebraska.gov/board-comm-req or by mail to the Office of the Governor, PO Box 94848, Lincoln, NE 68509-4848.
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