Haseloff releases Minister of Education Feussner - what is behind it?

Haseloff releases Minister of Education Feussner - what is behind it?

A surprising upheaval in the Saxony-Anhalt Education: Prime Minister Reiner Haseloff (CDU) has released the Minister of Education Eva Feußner (CDU) from her office. This decision was announced by the State Chancellery in an official announcement today, and it does not come out of the blue. The background of the dismissal is a weekly conflict between Feussner and parts of the CDU parliamentary group, which was increasingly visible.

Eva Feußner has been able to direct the fortunes of education policy in Saxony-Anhalt since 2018 since her appointment in 2021, and already as a state secretary in the Ministry of Education. Nevertheless, she was faced with massive criticism in the past few months, not least because of the controversial abolition of ski courses in physical education. Together with the allegation of alone and a lack of coordination within her own party, the demand for withdrawal became more and more a hot iron.

New course in the educational landscape

Haseloff's decision to appoint Jan Riedel as a new Minister of Education clearly shows that he wants a fresh wind in the Ministry. Riedel, headmaster of the Lyonel-Feininger-Gymnasium in Halle, not only brings experience from school practice, but also a new perspective. At the age of 43 and a well-founded background as a teacher at high schools in Wernigerode and Halle, he could deal with the challenges of Saxony-Anhalt's school policy.

The Prime Minister had previously conducted a crisis dialogue with representatives of the CDU parliamentary group and the Ministry of Education, in which controversial topics such as the payment of additional hours were discussed for teachers. The latter are still a hot topic, especially with regard to the new initiatives to improve teaching. Haseloff confirmed that it was important to regain trust within the faction and in school policy.

future challenges

In January 2023, the state government presented a package of measures to improve the learning conditions, which also includes an increase in the grade for primary school teachers. In addition, two pools with flexibly usable representative teachers and a dual teacher training at universities in Halle (Saale) and Magdeburg were planned. The introduction of ancestry hours that give teachers more freedom is sought for the second half of this school year. All of these measures aim to minimize the loss of teaching and stabilize the teacher situation in the state, as sachsen-anhalt.de Despite her dismissal,

Feussner will remain active as a member of the state parliament in the parliament in Magdeburg. She tried a lot for education policy and will continue to have to prove herself in the political arena.

The official presentation of Jan Riedel by Haseloff and CDU state chief Sven Schulze takes place on Wednesday. It remains to be seen how the educational landscape in Saxony-Anhalt will develop under his leadership and whether he can smooth the waves that its predecessor has raised. These changes clearly show that there is a lot to be done and the challenges are already waiting for the new leadership in the Ministry of Education.

For more information about the background to the dismissal of Feussner and the new goals under Riedel, we refer to as well Spiegel.de .