politics

Chas Anderson was often a person to watch -- the deputy campaign manager who helped propel Tim Pawlenty into the governor's office, a confidante who traveled with the governor to Israel, and Pawlenty's point person at the state's Department of Education.

Now she is being watched after having quietly left her job in June and then drawing the eye of investigators, who are now reviewing her role in an ethical dispute.

The inquiry, which involves a $5,000 contract she received as she left her job as deputy education commissioner, has lasted more than two months. State officials have brought in a consultant to lead the probe.

To her admirers, Anderson was a smart and extremely organized administrator who could be refreshingly blunt in pushing Pawlenty's often-controversial education agenda. Others found her an abrasive, $108,000-a-year political appointee who illustrated the governor's penchant for putting loyalists in high places regardless of their credentials.

Neither Pawlenty's office nor Anderson has commented on the inquiry. A spokesman for her issued a statement saying she was "honored" to have worked for the governor. Anderson was in her late 20s when she helped direct Pawlenty's win of the Republican endorsement for governor in 2002, leading a marathon floor fight into the early-morning hours in St. Paul that ultimately gave Pawlenty his victory over Brian Sullivan, a well-financed businessman.

"She was our field general," said Rep. Marty Seifert, the former Republican House Minority leader who worked for Pawlenty on the convention floor that night. "She knew where the votes needed to come from."

Chris Georgacas, Pawlenty's campaign chairman that year, said it was clear who wanted Anderson on the campaign. "It was really Tim who made the decision" to hire Anderson, he said.

Although she had only a bachelor of arts degree from St. Cloud State University and little experience on education issues, Pawlenty appointed Anderson to an $89,000-a-year job as assistant education commissioner soon after he became governor in January 2003. Ten months later, the agency promoted her to deputy education commissioner, putting her in charge of the Education Department's day-to-day operations.

"It was somewhat unusual for someone with that minimal experience," said Robert Wedl, a former state education commissioner for Republican Gov. Arne Carlson. Wedl said it soon became clear to legislators and others coming into contact with the department "that Chas pretty much spoke for the governor."

Rep. Mindy Greiling, DFL-Roseville, a House education committee chair, said that during this year's legislative session, she recognized there would be little progress between Pawlenty and DFLers on major education issues because Anderson was absent from key meetings.

"We always thought, 'Pawlenty's not very serious about education if he doesn't send Chas Anderson,'" Greiling said.

Curt Johnson, an aide to Carlson who now manages an education policy group, said Anderson could be dismissive of legislators, and remembered an exchange in 2009 between Greiling and Anderson. He said Anderson at one point mentioned a study that state officials had completed and Greiling, noting that legislators had asked for the study to be done, said that "if that report is done, why haven't we seen it?"

Anderson, according to Johnson, told Greiling that the department decided it was "not appropriate" to share the study with legislators. Johnson said a visibly upset Greiling "just ripped her ... on the spot."

But Rep. Bob Gunther, R-Fairmont, defended Anderson, saying her job often required her to deliver unwelcome news. Gunther said Anderson recently had to confront the small Butterfield-Odin school district on performance issues, and laid out options that included firing the school superintendent or even closing. "[She's] able to make a bad situation good, and a good situation better," said Gunther.

At the department, Anderson seemed to enjoy the perks of an influential administrator. In 2008, she accompanied Pawlenty on a trade mission to Israel which, according to the official agenda, did not focus on education issues. With the exception of an education mission that commissioner Alice Seagren took to Canada in 2004, Anderson's Israel trip was the only trade mission that a state education official joined in the past seven years.

The Education Department also paid $22,162 for Anderson to take classes at the University of Minnesota starting in 2008. Bill Walsh, a department spokesman, said paying for Anderson's schooling was not necessarily unusual.

Eugene Piccolo, who heads the Minnesota Association of Charter Schools, said Anderson cut a formidable figure during her tenure at the Education Department. "She could be very direct," he said. "She played ball very ... it was not softball, let's say that."

Mike Kaszuba • 651-222-1673