Lt. Gov. David Toland said Kansas is forging ahead on broadband efforts despite the exit of the state’s policy leader on the issue. Jade Piros de Carvalho was hired by Toland two years ago to run the Office of Broadband Development within the Kansas Department of Commerce. But Piros de Carvalho is no longer working for the agency, which she said, “was not my decision.”
Piros de Carvalho announced her ouster in a LinkedIn post last week, reports The Topeka Capital-Journal. “Tuesday brought the highest of highs and the lowest of lows,” she said. “At 9 a.m. I was taking a selfie with the Governor and listening to her sing my praises to a room full of my peers at the National Governors Association broadband workshop. It was truly a career high. I adore her. By that afternoon, I was told that my job was on the line. I said the wrong thing to the wrong person, who made a phone call, and I was gone.”
Piros de Carvalho continued: “We live in a very litigious society so you will not pry the person’s name out of me. I’m not interested in being sued.”
The exact comment that got Piros de Carvalho fired has not been made public. She did say her remark was “unprofessional” and she shouldn’t have made it. “But I’m flabbergasted that I was let go because of it,” Piros de Carvalho emphasized.
Toland, who is the commerce secretary, declined to comment on personnel matters. He told reporters this Monday that he was “happy to talk about our broadband strategy for the state and all the good work that’s happening to get these resources deployed across Kansas.”
In April, Piros de Carvalho was part of a briefing hosted by NTIA officials who praised the state’s plan for how to use the $452 million in federal BEAD funding. After her ouster, she expressed confidence in her former coworkers, who “will perform great with or without me at the helm.”
Toland said Piros de Carvalho’s exit doesn’t hurt ongoing broadband efforts, reports The Topeka Capital-Journal. “We’re full steam ahead with our plan to implement the federal funds that the state has received — as well as the state broadband funds through the Ike [Eisenhower] legacy transportation plan — so that we can get this infrastructure in the ground and make certain that we are getting folks connected to it, and also looking at the access side as well.”
The Kansas Office of Broadband Development now has an interim director, and Toland said a national search has begun for a permanent director. “We need to make certain that we have someone who can continue the great work of that office and take us on to the next level,” Toland said.
By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief
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