It’s still not clear why Alex Pettit, who had held the post of state Chief Information Officer since 2014, resigned.

But when the Governor’s Office was preparing a press release to announce the news, Pettit had one addendum, according to email records released by the Governor’s Office: “If you would not mind feeding my vainglory, as this is going to make some news, would you be willing to put Ph.D. after my name?” Pettit wrote. “I’m sorry to ask, I don’t use it often but when there is a formal announcement it helps to see it.”

Pettit’s resignation was announced late April 6, a Friday when Oregon Gov. Kate Brown also held a press conference on her decision on a major tax bill, which dominated that day’s state politics news cycle. So far, top officials have been largely quiet about the reasons for Pettit’s departure.