President Bush last week appointed David Dunn, Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings’ chief of staff, to the position of acting undersecretary at the Department of Education.
Mr. Dunn will fill the No. 3 position at the department, which has been vacant since Edward R. McPherson left in December.
Mr. Dunn has been chief of staff to Ms. Spellings since she took over at the Education Department a year ago.
His association with Ms. Spellings dates back to their days in Texas. He held the same position at the Texas Association of School Boards—associate executive director for government relations—that Ms. Spellings once held with the Austin-based group. In 2002, Mr. Dunn joined the White House as a domestic-policy aide under Ms. Spellings, who was President Bush’s first-term domestic-policy chief.
In his acting position, Mr. Dunn will oversee vocational and adult education, postsecondary education, and the president’s proposed changes to the Pell Grant program, according to the Education Department. He will continue to serve as Ms. Spellings’ chief of staff as well.
