State school board members vowed Tuesday to take the case for their political independence to lawmakers, citizens and Gov. Ted Strickland, after the governor proposed last week to demote them to an advisory role.

A story from the AP says, without discussion, members of the Ohio Board of Education voted unanimously to support the state's existing system for governing public schools: a hybrid school board of elected and appointed members, and a superintendent who serves at their pleasure.

Strickland proposes bringing the public school system under his office's control and naming a state education director to oversee it.

"It's important that decisions that have to do with education are made in the public," said board President Jennifer Sheets. "It would not be appropriate, given the size of our budget and how many citizens are affected by what we do, that any decisions regarding that be made behind closed doors."

In his speech, Strickland called the state Education Department unwieldy and splintered _ a statement board member Virgil Brown refuted.

Brown said board members represent the state's diverse rural, urban and suburban communities _ and it's natural for them to have differences of opinion.