Jane Beshear's name taken off state building
Bevin administration removes Jane Beshear's name from Capitol Education Center
Jane Beshear's name taken off state building Bevin administration removes Jane Beshear's name from Capitol Education Center Check out this story on courier-journal.com: http://cjky.it/29CBu6t
Morgan Watkins, @morganwatkins26 Published 4:44 p.m. ET July 8, 2016 | Updated 6:45 p.m. ET July 8, 2016
Former Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear and his wife Jane Beshear, shown at the 2012 Kentucky Derby.(Photo: The Courier-Journal)Buy Photo
The Capitol Education Center in Frankfort draws thousands of students to its doors each year and has borne the name of Jane Beshear, Kentucky's former first lady, for months.
But a sign stamped with her name that used to stand by the center was removed on July 1 as Gov. Matt Bevin's administration moves forward with plans to give the place a new name, although one hasn't been chosen yet.
Around 60,000 students check out the center each year when they take field trips to the Kentucky Capitol, spokeswoman Pamela Trautner of the state's Finance and Administration Cabinet said. The administration will rename the building to honor Kentucky's military heritage.
The goal is to give special recognition to "Gold Star" families in the Commonwealth, Trautner said, but they haven't worked out how they'll do that yet. The federal government bestows Gold Star pins upon people whose family members were killed in the line of duty during certain conflicts and military operations.
Trautner didn't offer any further explanation for the decision to remove Beshear's name from the building and give it a new moniker.
Former First Lady Jane Beshear: The Bevin administration removed her name from the Capitol Education Center. (Photo: CJ file photo)
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There already has been friction between Bevin and the Beshear family this year. The current governor and his predecessor have thrown claims of corruption at each other, and Bevin jettisoned Jane Beshear from the Kentucky Horse Park Commission when he reorganized it.
The Capitol Education Center opened in early 2013 when Steve Beshear still served as governor. He christened it as the Jane K. Beshear Capitol Education Center last November.
In an emailed statement Friday, Beshear said it is the new governor's prerogative to change the center's name.
"I named it after Jane because she raised over $250,000 from the private sector to transform that old, abandoned building into a place where Kentucky schoolchildren visiting our Capitol could eat lunch and learn about different kinds of energy used in Kentucky," he said. "She never sought any recognition for her efforts, but I was proud to surprise her by naming the building for her."
Jane Beshear secured a $250,000 contribution from Duke Energy and other donations for the project, a 2015 news release said.
Other money was used to revamp the building as well, though. The state's Finance and Administration Cabinet contributed almost $1.1 million to help pay for the initiative, according to a 2013 press release.
Reporter Morgan Watkins can be reached at (502) 875-5136 or mwatkins@courier-journal.com.
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