Gov. Mike Leavitt chose to buck history Monday when he appointed Kathleen Clarke as executive director of the Utah Department of Natural Resources, the first woman to hold the position in the department's history.
Leavitt has nothing but confidence in Clarke - a former DNR deputy director and interim executive director - while at the same time he defended her predecessor, Ted Stewart. Stewart left his position as director of the beleaguered DNR in March to become Leavitt's chief of staff.Leavitt admitted the road ahead for Clarke will likely not be smooth. "The department has often been the focus of different sets of values and philosophies," he said.
Clarke was formerly Rep. Jim Hansen's director of constituent services and executive director of his Ogden office.