As Gov. Dannel P. Malloy prepares for a second term the core advisers in his inner circle remain in place, but his selection of a new commissioner of education will be closely watched as a signal about the direction he plans to take his administration on that issue.

As for the inner circle, Ben Barnes will remain as secretary of policy and management, the office responsible for preparing the governor's budget and managing it once enacted by the legislature. Barnes has been with the Malloy administration from the start and previously worked with the governor when Malloy was the mayor of Stamford.

Barnes' return is pivotal. Dealing with projected deficits, while undertaking a new Malloy priority - improving the state's transportation system - will take someone thoroughly acquainted with the intricacies of state government and spending, along with the confidence to speak difficult truths to the governor. It is hard to imagine anyone else filling that bill better than Barnes.

Adding to the continuity, Malloy will also keep in place his chief of staff, Mark Ojakian, who arrived one year into the governor's term.

Gone however, is the education commissioner, Stefan Pryor. The governor announced during the campaign that Pryor would not continue into a second term. While presented as a mutual decision, it was widely interpreted as an attempt by the governor to distance himself from the sometimes-controversial Pryor. The commissioner was particularly unpopular with teacher unions, a group critical to the political success of any Democrat wanting to be governor.

Pryor played a major role in drafting Malloy's education reforms and steering them through the legislature. Among the controversial proposals, Pryor fought for tying teacher evaluations to standardized test results, allowing the state to intercede in the lowest-performing school districts, and boosting school choice through magnet and charter school expansion.

Malloy's selection of an education reformer as his next commissioner would signal his intent to push forward, despite labor resistance, while a more mainstream selection could indicate a decision not to push too hard.

As for Pryor, he has taken on a new, difficult and very different challenge. Last week Rhode Island Governor-elect Gina Raimondo, a Democrat, named Pryor to lead that state's Department of Commerce. Rhode Island has the third-highest unemployment rate in the country. While that may seem an odd switch for Pryor, his previous work includes serving as deputy mayor and director of economic and housing development in Newark, N.J. He developed his educational credentials in working for creation of charter schools.

Also departing from the Malloy administration will be Andrew Doba, the communications director. This appears to be a personal choice for Doba. Serving as a spokesman for the governor, particularly one as kinetic as Malloy, allows little time for a personal life.

Doba - pronounced DOUGH-ba - was zealous in his defense of the governor, a fact to which I can attest. An editorial critical of Malloy was often followed by a call from Doba challenging facts and assumptions. On the other hand, he was always quick to return a call, kept to the point and minimized the spin.

He would usually begin these phone conversations in the same manner - "Doba."

Mark Bergman, the governor's mouthpiece during the election, takes over as communications director.

Speculation continued last week as to whether former Supreme Court Justice Joette Katz would return as commissioner of the Department of Children Families, perhaps the most difficult, thankless job in the administration. Katz's reforms have been on target - including working to keep families intact and dramatically reducing the placement of children out of state - but have also gained her detractors. The governor should ask her to stay on. It would be the state's gain if she accepts.

Paul Choiniere is the editorial page editor. p.choiniere@theday.com

Twitter: @Paul_Choiniere