Steady Hand in an Unpredictable Time - Andrew Kreighbaum, Inside Higher Ed

Recent personnel choices at the Department of Education have received scrutiny for connections to private industry and personal ideologies at odds with the mission of their office. But the appointment of James Manning, a career public official, has drawn a different sort of reaction. Manning was named acting under secretary of education last week, one of nine hires officially announced by the department. Former officials who have worked under Republican and Democratic administrations described Manning as an administrator with a broad skill set and a deep understanding of the workings of the student financial aid system. Even critics of recent steps taken by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on student loan servicing said it was important to have an expert on the complex federal loan program in place at the department. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017/04/27/higher-ed-observers-call-james-manning-steady-hand-department-education